The cartel bought crystals and crystals that are from the hypercrates or grand crystal boxes etc are not suppose to require artifact authorization.
http://www.swtor.com/patchnotes/11172015/game-update-4.0.2-patch-notes
The patch notes for Nov 17th outline this more with showing some of the crystals they've specifically targeted to remove artifact authorization from.
If after the patch you're still receiving the error for the artifact equipment authorization I'd suggest emailing [edit: email address removed] assuming that you can't submit an in game ticket.
The following Cartel Market Color crystals have had their artifact permission requirement removed:
I haven't looked into the collections issue, but at least my initial issue was resolved and I am appreciative for that.
Latest patch did nothing for my equipment. Too bad, I loved playing the game....back to Diablo III.
My Jedi Guardian's Yavin Bulwark MK-1 implants still require artifact authorization.
