Metro 2

The Consumer Data Industry Association developed the Metro 2 guidelines in 1997, according to the CFPB's 2012 white paper, and keeps the detailed manual, the Credit Reporting Resource Guide, behind an access agreement for furnishers, data processors, software vendors and bureaus. Each account becomes a record of coded fields: status, balances, dates, the responsibility code and up to 24 months of payment history.

Seeing your report as translated codes explains a lot, such as why a paid collection still reads as a collection. It also explains why precise disputes work better: naming the exact field that's wrong gives the furnisher something to check. Be wary of templates claiming accounts are "not Metro 2 compliant" without saying what's inaccurate, since a bureau can treat those as frivolous.