MegaCortex ransomware slams enterprise firms with $5.8 million blackmail demands
A new variant of MegaCortex ransomware is making its way across Europe and the United States, leaving blackmail demands worth millions in its wake.
Accenture iDefense researchers described campaigns making use of MegaCortex v.2 in a blog poston Monday. According to Leo Fernandes, Senior Manager of the Malware Analysis and Countermeasures (MAC) team, the operators behind theransomwareare focusing on corporate targets -- and are in it to hit the criminal jackpot. During recent, targeted attacks, the operators of the C++ malware have focused on infiltrating servers containing corporate resources in order to encrypt them and any connected network hosts.
JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon talks college affordability, the economy and why the bank is hiring coders
JPMorgan chief executive Jamie Dimon paid a visit to Wilmington, Del., on Monday to visit the bank’s extensive corporate offices, glad-hand among the state’s 11,000-strong workforce in a town hall meeting, and take in a coding boot camp it funds called Zip Code Wilmington. That last group trains computer coders in a 12-week, $12,000-tuition program to educate potential workers for JPMorgan, which has roughly 250,000 employees globally. Students either completed college or dropped out and pivoted to software as a way to earn an average of $74,000 upon graduation, according to Zip Code officials. Dimon sat down with The Inquirer to elaborate on why he’s going on his 10th annual bus tour of the bank’s East Coast operations — including Philadelphia, Boston, and Washington — and his views on the economy.
Bank consolidation has heated up in recent weeks. Eighteen deals, with a total value of more than $2.4 billion, have been announced since mid-July. Half of the year’s 10 biggest agreements ranked by deal value were announced in June and July. To be sure, the overall pace of consolidation still lags that of prior years. The 143 deal announcements to date is 15% lower than during the same period last year. The aggregate deal value of $14.4 billion, excluding the BB&T-SunTrust megamerger, is off 31% from 2018. Here are some of the most noteworthy deals announced in June and July.
Compliance Blog explores DOJ, Nissan MAC settlement
Following the Department of Justice's (DOJ) announcement of a $3 million settlement with Nissan Motor Acceptance Corporation for alleged violations of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA), NAFCU's Brandy Bruyere reviews the settlement and answers questions on the SCRA specifically related to vehicle repossession in a new post on the Compliance Blog.
Fed to offer faster payments system, setting up clash with big banks
The Federal Reserve on Monday announced it will build its own infrastructure for near-instant payments, a move that will have sweeping implications for banks and consumers nationwide. Such a system would allow people to receive money in their bank accounts within seconds after it’s sent to them, lightning speed by today’s standards. Under the traditional system that handles card payments and direct deposits, transactions are settled en masse three times a day and only during business hours, a costly reality for the millions of Americans living paycheck to paycheck.
PWCI – NETWORK OF PROFESSIONAL WOMEN IN THE COLLECTIONS AND CALL CENTER INDUSTRIES MEETS AT DCS2019
PWCI – Network of Professional Women in the Collections and Call Center Industries meets at DCS2019. KEEP YOUR SKILLS SHARP! Join Alex Siotos and other PWCI members and women in the industry in this roundtable discussion from 1:30 p.m. to 2:50 p.m. on Tuesday, September 10th at the Red Rock in Las Vegas.
An update on credit access and the Bureau’s first No-Action Letter
For some consumers, the use of unconventional sources of information, or “alternative data,” to evaluate creditworthiness may be a way to increase access to credit or decrease the cost of credit. Alternative data includes information not typically found in core credit files of nationwide consumer reporting agencies and may indicate a likelihood of meeting obligations on time that a traditional credit history may not reflect.
Fed to offer faster payments system, setting up clash with big banks
The Federal Reserve on Monday announced it will build its own infrastructure for near-instant payments, a move that will have sweeping implications for banks and consumers nationwide. Such a system would allow people to receive money in their bank accounts within seconds after it’s sent to them, lightning speed by today’s standards. Under the traditional system that handles card payments and direct deposits, transactions are settled en masse three times a day and only during business hours, a costly reality for the millions of Americans living paycheck to paycheck.
Created in July 2010, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has been a welcome advocate for consumers wronged by businesses and financial institutions. In its short lifetime, the agency has fielded 1.5 million consumer complaints, publishing just fewer than 1.2 million of them in a convenientsearchable form. The CFPB commands attention, as 97% of complaints sent to the CFPB get timely responses from the companies involved.
Why tech-savvy young adults can’t quit bank branches
In the age of the app, it would be easy to assume that adults in their 20s and 30s would never go to a bank branch. Millions of young adults have all kinds of options to visit and do business with their financial institution from a much closer distance at all hours: on their smartphones, via Venmo and Instagram app.
Apple invites first customers to apply for its credit card
After months of anticipation,Applehas invited some select customers to apply for its Apple Card. Apple CEO Tim Cookhad said during its third quarter earnings callthat the new credit card, released in partnership withGoldman Sachs, would be released in August. The card is part of Apple’s broader push to expand its services business from its 1.4 billion active Apple devices. Apple is counting on services to boost revenue as iPhone sales slow. Apple reported $11.46 billion in services revenue for the third quarter, with Cook telling CNBC’s Josh Lipton it was a “great services quarter.”
Weltman Grows Creditors’ Rights Practice with Opening of Louisville Office
LOUISVILLE, KY — August 5, 2019 — Weltman, Weinberg & Reis Co., LPA (Weltman), a full-service creditors’ rights law firm now in its 89th year of client service, is excited to announce the opening of its Louisville, Kentucky office. The office is located at 4360 Brownsboro Road, Unit 315 in the Summit II office space in Crescent Hill. This is the firm’s 9th office nationally, and the first in Kentucky.
Sentiment among consumer advocacy groups is split on theConsumer Financial Protection Bureau’s announcement of the30-day extensionon the comment period for its proposed debt collection rule. Last month a group of consumer advocacy groups and industry trade groups sent separatelettersto the CFPB requesting a 60- to 90-day extension on the comment period related to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Today, the CFPB announced it would extend the comment period 30 days, to Sept. 18.
The Title Report has learned from multiple sources that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is on the verge of filing a lawsuit against an independent mortgage lender concerning violations of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA). The action – which could come as soon as Monday morning, The Title Report has learned – concerns an investigation of an ECOA violation that appears to be based on marketing. Sources have told The Title Report that the target of the investigation is a small, three-person mortgage company located in Chicago, which marketed their services on a conservative AM radio station in the area. The Title Report reached out to legal counsel for the firm but has not gotten a response.
Student Debt Seen at $3 Trillion in 10 Years – Expert
Interest rates on student loans may not drop lower, but tuition can and should. That's according to Brendan Coughlin, head of consumer deposits and lending at Citizens Bank. "Tuition growth has been two times wage growth for the last two decades," Coughlin said. "That's really creating this funding gap where the average consumer can't possibly save at the same pace that tuition costs are going up and it's creating a big financial gap." Student debt is 15% of U.S. GDP, but "You got to really get to the root cause of this," said Coughlin. "So when wage growth isn't at the same pace of tuition growth, there's a funding gap." He mentioned that markets, of course, self correct, but tuitions have not come down, creating an affordability and debt problem.
Justice Department Reaches $3 Million Settlement with Nissan Motor Acceptance Corporation for Violating the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act
The Department of Justice announced today that Nissan Motor Acceptance Corporation (Nissan MAC) has agreed to pay $3 million to resolve allegations that it violated the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA). The suit alleges that Nissan MAC repossessed 113 vehicles owned by SCRA-protected servicemembers without first obtaining the required court orders, and failed to refund up-front capitalized cost reduction (CCR) amounts to servicemembers who lawfully terminated their motor vehicle leases early after receiving military orders. This settlement is the Justice Department’s 10th settlement with an auto finance provider since 2015 and exemplifies continued efforts to enforce the SCRA’s motor vehicle repossession and lease termination provisions.
Attorney General James And DFS Superintendent Lacewell Take Action Against Fraudulent Mortgage Lender
NEW YORK – Attorney General Letitia James and New York Superintendent of Financial Services Linda A. Lacewell today filed suit in federal court against Vision Property Management, LLC; the company’s CEO, Alex Szkaradek; and a number of other companies affiliated with Vision for operating an illegal, deceptive, and unlicensed mortgage lending business in New York since at least 2011. By offering disguised, predatory subprime home loans and illegal finance-lease hybrid agreements, Vision and the other defendants took part in fraudulent activities that repeatedly targeted and took advantage of financially vulnerable New Yorkers.
How BofA’s Chief Turned Giant Problem Into Tech-Driven Powerhouse
When Bank of America’s Brian Moynihan talks about bringing fintech firms into “the tent,” he isn’t talking about inviting the folks of Silicon Valley, New York’s Silicon Alley, London, and elsewhere into BofA headquarters for a management retreat. He’s talking about equal regulation. Regulation makes a lot of people in banking roll their eyes and groan, but Moynihan saw from firsthand experience during the financial crisis the results of untethered financial innovation. It nearly brought down the entire financial system. The former lawyer is concerned that some of the same seeds are being sown again.
NAFCU supports enhanced data security protections under safeguards proposal
NAFCU's Andrew Morris shared the association's support of the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) efforts to modernize its Safeguards Rule in a letter sent Friday. The proposed amendments would amend the FTC's implementation of the Gramm-Leach Bliley Act's (GLBA) safeguards provisions by aligning data security standards for nonbank financial companies more closely with those already established by prudential regulators.
Banks could get fined for cyber breaches, top regulator says
New York (CNN Business)Cybersecurity is the biggest threat facing America's banks, FDIC Chairman Jelena McWilliams told CNN Business. "It's something we take very seriously," McWilliams said during an interview this week. Capital One(COF), which is not regulated by the FDIC, recently revealed amassive cyber breachthat exposed sensitive information on more than 100 million customers.
CFPB Extends Comment Period for Debt Collection Proposal
WASHINGTON, D.C.– The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) announced today that it is extending the comment period on its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) implementing the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). To facilitate the ability of commenters to consider the issues raised in the NPRM, gather data, and prepare their responses, the comment period will be extended by 30 days to September 18, 2019.
Additional Defendants in Student Debt Relief Schemes Agree to Settle FTC Charges
Additional defendants involved with student loan debt relief schemes have been permanently banned from selling debt relief services pursuant to settlements with the Federal Trade Commission. The FTC alleged that they tricked consumers into paying illegal upfront fees in hopes of reducing or eliminating their student loan debt. One of the defendants, Brenda Avitia-Pena, has been ordered to pay $11 million as part of her settlement with the Commission.
ROOM BLOCK ENDS AUGUST 16 FOR THE DEBT CONNECTION SYMPOSIUM AND EXPO 2019 SEPTEMBER 10-12, 2019 AT THE RED ROCK HOTEL IN LAS VEGAS, NV
Have you booked your room at the Red Rock Hotel? We have insured that all Debt Connection Symposium and Expo 2019 conference attendees get a conference-discounted rate of $190 for a standard room. So if you do not have your room reserved, please act fast, space is limited, and we expect to sell out. Debt Connection Symposium and Expo 2019 will be held on September 10-12, 2019 at the Red Rock Hotel in Las Vegas, NV.
Standard Room Discount Rate For Registered Attendees
Hotel Information: Red Rock Casino Resort & Spa 11011 W Charleston Blvd Las Vegas, NV 89135 Phone: 702-797-7777 Reservation Code: RCIDCS Room Block Ends August 16, 2019 The room rate of $190 is for DCS2019 registered conference attendees only.
