CENTREVILLE, Va. -

According to a news release distributed on Thursday, CARFAX filed a complaint this month as a first step toward stopping businesses from illegally accessing its data. The suit was filed against Patrick K. Willis Company Inc., doing business as American Recovery Service (ARS).

CARFAX said ARS is one of several companies that the vehicle history report provider has identified as violating its terms and conditions of use associated with the consumer-facing myCARFAX service.

The company reiterated the myCARFAX service is specifically designed for personal use by individual vehicle owners to help better track their service history and be alerted to open recalls. CARFAX pointed out that offers several other tools to help businesses utilize vehicle history through legitimate business accounts.

“Our data is at the core of our business,” CARFAX general counsel Julie Ortmeier said. “When we discover someone is misusing our data, we will take action.

“For the last 35 years we’ve worked to build strong relationships with our data providers and our customers, and we care about maintaining the integrity of the information our data providers and customers have come to expect and rely on,” Ortmeier continued.

The company said more than 28,000 dealers, 58,000 service shops and 5,400 auto finance and insurance companies partner with CARFAX.