Previously covered the suit filed by the debt settlement company Morgan Drexen against the CFPB, here. Today I went to see what, if any, updates there were on the case. Here is the latest: “The Court held two on the record telephone conference calls with the parties on July 24, 2013 and July 25, 2013, during which Plaintiffs consented to ... Read More »

Kara Singleton Adams, from Georgia, was found guilty last week on charges of wire fraud, conspiracy, and structuring financial transactions, relating to a $25 million nationwide telemarketing fraud scheme. Already convicted in this scheme are three co-defendants including Adams’ husband, Jason James Eyer, James Adolph Schoenholz, and Brittany Dunphy. All three pleaded guilty to related charges before Adams’ trial and ... Read More »

Yesterday, President Obama and representatives from other Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies met to discuss consumer cross-border data privacy protection at a meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii. The meeting focused on the APEC Cross-Border Privacy Rules, a new initiative to harmonize safe data sharing across country borders and enhance the protection of consumer data that moves between the United States and ... Read More »

Looking for free government grants endorsed by President Obama and Vice President Biden? Dietary supplements supported by scientific research and endorsed by Oprah? How about exclusive credit offers? …Keep looking. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has halted an operation called, the “Grant Connect” program, that allegedly deceived and mislead consumers about bogus products and services with unsubstantiated claims. The complaint ... Read More »

It’s often not a parent’s first thought to check the credit report of their minor child, however, it may now become a necessity. Not because a child may fraudulently be using credit without their parents’ knowledge but because scammers may have stolen their unused Social Security number and identity. The Better Business Bureau (BBB) put out a warning last week ... Read More »

A week ago the BBB posted an article in the blog section of their website entitled “Penny Auctions: Unless You Win, You’re Probably Wasting Time and Money.” Personally, I found it hard to believe that penny auction sites were at all accredited by the BBB – this new blog post of theirs makes me feel a little bit better. In ... Read More »

A recent appearance by Elizabeth Warren of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in front of a Congressional hearing ended most unfortunately when Representative McHenry, Republican of South Carolina, accused Warren of making up the fact their staffs had agreed to an ending time for the meeting. Essentially he publicly called her a liar. More details about the hearing make it ... Read More »

Consumers Union and a bunch of other groups have submitted a letter to the CFPB to ask that consumers have easy access to complaints filed against companies. Read More »

Ever wonder how effective tearing up an unwanted credit card offer is? Many will just tear it in half, or even tiny pieces, throw it in the garbage and never think of it again. However, how easy would it be for a criminal to get a hold of your garbage and tape it back together? So many of us think, ... Read More »

The Honorable Dennis McKinney, Treasurer, State of Kansas U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Representative Moore, Chairman August 24, 2010 Testimony by Kansas State Treasurer Dennis McKinney Good morning Chairman. As Kansas State Treasurer, I believe financial literacy is a national priority. As a result, my office provides a variety of financial literacy ... Read More »

I was wondering when I’d get a chance to feature The Gregory Brothers on the site. It is a wonderful day. Here is one of their latest songs entitled: Bankers’ Song – We Didn’t See It Comin Read More »

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) comprised a report, Homeownership Preservation: Federal Efforts to Combat Foreclosure Rescue Schemes Are Under Way, but Improved Planning Elements Could Enhance Progress, based on “information available to federal and state agencies and nonprofit organizations, such as consumer complaints and the number of enforcement actions.” The report revealed two predominant schemes in this day and age ... Read More »

We’ve covered this topic time and time again (see Know Your For-Profit College ABC’s: Assertive, Bold and Cheeky. How I Almost Became a For-Profit College Statistic and Government Finds Fraud and Deception in Marketing for For-Profit Colleges); for-profit colleges and their deceptive practices to get students to enroll and take out loans they cannot afford. However, on August 21, 2010 ... Read More »

Martin Sher of AmSher Receivables Management in Birmingham, Alabama has recently made a huge step in the debt collection industry with “The Collector’s Pledge”. Sher, with over 30 years experience in the credit and collection industry was named as the president of ACA International (the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals) for 2010-2011. Sher co-owns AmSher Receivables with his brother, ... Read More »

Overdraft “protection” as we know it in America will make a positive change August 15, 2010. Considering to protect something means to cover or shield from exposure, injury, damage, or destruction, overdraft “protection” is anything but that. I view it as one of those “convince” fees. Let’s just call it what it is: a service charge. Most banks charge a ... Read More »