COSTA MESA, Calif. -

No doubt, finance companies are looking for whatever reliable piece of information they can examine while they’re first deciding if they should make an auto finance offer to a potential vehicle buyer and then exploring what terms and down payment should be leveraged.

So what about using someone’s social media profile? After all, Experian cited data from Statista that indicated 81 percent of Americans have a social media profile in 2017, up from 78 percent last year and 24 percent back in 2008.

Before the underwriting department starts to tap Facebook to go along with paystubs, Experian cautioned the industry in a recent blog post about the potential pitfalls of social media profiles ever being used in a credit decision. Analysts’ reasons included:

1. Experian said, “There is that little rule called the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, which states credit must be extended to all creditworthy applicants regardless of race, religion, gender, marital status, age and other personal characteristics. A quick scan of any Facebook profile can reveal these things, and more. Credit applications do not ask for these specific details for this very reason.”

2. Experian added, “Social media data can also be manipulated. One can ‘like’ financial articles, participate in educational quizzes and represent themselves as if they are financially responsible. Social media can be gamed. On the flip side, a consumer can’t manipulate their payment history.”

While using social media information still might not be used in underwriting anytime soon, Experian reiterated that there are other compliant avenues finance companies can take to ensure the best possible paper is coming into their portfolios.

“In the meantime, other sources of data are being evaluated. Everything from including on-time utility and rental payments, insights on smaller dollar loans and various credit attributes can help to provide a more holistic view of today’s credit consumer,” Experian said.

“There is no question social media data will continue to grow exponentially. But in the world of credit decisioning, the ‘like’ button cannot be given quite yet,” Experian went on to say.