The proper and legal terminology under the FDCPA is "debt collector."
The general definition of a debt collector under the FDCPA is a party who is collecting a deliquent debt that originated with another party.
Debt collectors can include many sub-categories, such as a business who engages primary in the collection of debts ("collection agency"), a law firm acting primary to collect on debts as opposed to legal reporesentation of a client, a debt collector who deals primarily in debt for which the statute of limitations and credit report exclusion period has expired ("junk debt buyer""), and even a creditor collecting on their own debt if they use a name that would convey to the consumer that they are a party other than the original creditor.
A debt collector can obtain collection authority in two ways. They can either be assigned collection authority by another, or they can obtain that authority by purchase of the debt. Any debt collector who then reports their collection to a CRA is reporting the balance they are authorized to collect, which may or may not also be debt they own.
The important distinction is whethr the party is a debt collector, which is the ciriteria that then subjects them to the provisions of the FDCPA, including requirment to provide dunning notice, the DV process, and debt collection practices prohibited actions.
The sub-catefory of debt collector, such as junk debt buyer, is often not of significance to their coverage under the FDCPA, but does define certain other aspects, such as whether they can sue or whether theri collection can be shown in the consumer's credit report. JBDs cannot legally enforce collection of the debt, and thus if the consumer chooses to pay, can often be settled for a small percentage of the debt.
