What is formjacking? New cyber security scam is on the rise

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Formjacking can make you a victim on any website, and even some of the most secure sites can be vulnerable. The worst part about this new scam is you don't even know you're a victim until it's too late. You could be shopping, or filling out a job application or a government form on what you think is a secure website. But it isn't. "The attacker figures out how to put malicious code on to their website and that malicious code will steal your information," said Andrew Hoog of Chicago-based cybersecurity company Now Secure.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and South Carolina File Suit against brokers of High-Interest Credit Offers

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) and the South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs (South Carolina) today filed a lawsuit in federal district court in the District of South Carolina against Katharine Snyder, Performance Arbitrage Company, Inc., and Life Funding Options, Inc. The companies, owned and operated by Snyder, brokered contracts offering high-interest credit to veterans, many of whom are disabled, and to other consumers. The Bureau alleges that the companies and their owner violated the Consumer Financial Protection Act’s prohibition against deceptive acts or practices.

New SCOTUS petition: CFPB enforcement must be undone if agency is unconstitutional

(Reuters) - The drama over the constitutionality of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau took another surprise turn on Monday, when a Mississippi payday lender, All American Check Cashing, filed a petition asking the U.S. Supreme Court to grant review of its constitutional challenge to the CFPB before the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issues an opinion in the case.

Attorney General Becerra Secures Court Ruling Rejecting FCC’s Attempt to Preempt State Net Neutrality Laws

SACRAMENTO – California Attorney General Xavier Becerra today issued the following statement on a ruling by the United States Court of Appeals regarding the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) order repealing the FCC's prior neutrality rules. In January 2018, Attorney General Becerra, as part of a coalition of 22 attorneys general, challenged the FCC’s decision to repeal net neutrality. Today, the court issued an opinion vacating the FCC's Preemption Directive, which would have barred states from imposing their own net neutrality requirements. The Court also remanded the order to the FCC to address issues related to public safety, utility pole attachments, and impacts on the Lifeline Program, which protects low income consumers.

Bank of America, early adopter of Zelle, thrilled by huge increase in use of fund transfer app

Bank of America started using Zelle as a way to allow its customers to more easily make person-to-person fund transfers. It was a convenience its customers in the marketplace and in focus groups said they desired. Bank of America officials, however, have been surprised by its rapid rate of use. Since its introduction in 2016, the use of Zelle by Bank of America customers has grown every year. In fact, its use in 2019 topped its total use in 2018 in fewer than nine months, as the bank handled more than 160 million transactions through the end of August — and could break 200 million for the year

Smaller Banks, Credit Unions and Digital Lenders Hit Hardest by Business Lending Fraud Losses, According to LexisNexis Risk Solutions Study

ATLANTA, Oct. 2, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- LexisNexis® Risk Solutions today released the results from its LexisNexis® Risk Solutions 2019 Small and Mid-Sized Business (SMB) Lending Fraud Survey. The study found that lending fraud financially impacts smaller banks, credit unions and digital lenders at twice the rate of larger competitors, with fraud monetary losses for smaller banks amounting to 4.5% and 5.8% of overall revenue, compared to 2.9% for larger institutions.

CFPB Investigating Loan Program at College Chain

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is looking into loans and other financing offered to students by the Center for Excellence in Higher Education, which operates the College America and the Stevens-Henager College chains. The agency notified CEHE in April that it was seeking information about whether it had misrepresented the loans to students or enrolled students in loan programs without their consent. The college chain objected in May to a civil investigative demand from CFPB -- essentially an information-gathering tool used by law enforcement agencies -- and asked that it be narrowed or set aside. CFPB director Kathleen Kraninger rejected that request in August.

Appeals court upholds net neutrality repeal but rules FCC can’t block state laws

A federal appeals court on Tuesday delivered a mixed ruling for net neutrality supporters and opponents alike, allowing the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) 2017 repeal to stand but striking down a provision blocking states from implementing their own open internet rules.  The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals also ordered the FCC to revise the repeal order to take into consideration other issues, like the effect that it will have on public safety, broadband subsidies and the regulation of cable pole attachments.

CHAIRMAN PAI STATEMENT ON VICTORY IN D.C. CIRCUIT

WASHINGTON, October 1, 2019—Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai released the following statement regarding the D.C. Circuit’s decision largely upholding the Restoring Internet Freedom Order:  “Today’s decision is a victory for consumers, broadband deployment, and the free and open Internet. The court affirmed the FCC’s decision to repeal 1930s utility-style regulation of the  Internet imposed by the prior Administration. The court also upheld our robust transparency rule so that consumers can be fully informed about their online options. Since we adopted  the Restoring Internet Freedom Order, consumers have seen 40% faster speeds and millions more Americans have gained access to the Internet. A free and open Internet is what we have today and what we’ll continue to have moving forward. We look forward to addressing on remand the narrow issues that the court identified.”

Millennials More likely to Report Losing Money to Fraud than Older Generations, New FTC Data Spotlight Reports

Millennials are 25 percent more likely to report that they have lost money to fraud than consumers aged 40 and over, according to a new Federal Trade Commission analysis of consumer complaint data.   The FTC’s latest Consumer Protection Data Spotlight shows that millennials—those ages 20-39—are twice as likely to report losing money to online shopping fraud than those 40 and over. Online shopping fraud reports include complaints about items that are never delivered or are not as they were advertised. Millennials reported losing $71 million to online shopping fraud—out of the nearly $450 million they reported losing to all types of fraud—in the last two years.

Banks get relief for residential real estate appraisals; NCUA rule planned

Three federal banking agencies issued a joint final rule to increase the threshold for residential real estate appraisals to $400,000. The NCUA is expected to propose a rule to increase the threshold for credit unions this year, which will likely provide parity with banks.

FTC Sends More Than $5.4 Million to People Who Paid for Worthless Student Loan Debt Relief

The Federal Trade Commission is sending more than $5.4 million to nearly 40,000 people who lost money to a student loan debt relief scam. The defendants behind the scam were required to turn over money under a 2018 settlement with the FTC.

Compliance: CFPB issues FAQs on SAFE Act amendments

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has published four frequently asked questions about the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act (SAFE Act) of 2008, and the amendments made by enactment of S. 2155. These amendments are effective Nov. 24, and details can be found in a recent CUNA CompBlog entry. S. 2155 permits state-licensed mortgage loan originators (MLOs) licensed in one state to temporarily work in another state while waiting for licensing approval in the new state, if certain conditions are met.

Citizens Bank CEO On The Rise Of A Super-Regional Bank

Earlier in his career, Bruce Van Saun got passed over for an opportunity to be the CEO of a major bank after it merged with another company. It was a disappointing development, but fate would be on his side. He went to Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) as a CFO in the late 2000s as the company had taken a recent tumble and needed a new team to bring it back to health. As it turned out, RBS needed to offload some of its assets thanks to a European bailout rule and in 2013, the company decided to divest Citizens Bank, a super-regional bank it owned with a major presence in the northeast U.S.

What Charles Scharf’s Visa years say about his plan for payments at Wells

Wells Fargo has named Charles Scharf to be its next CEO, placing an experienced bank executive at the top of the troubled company.   In the payments world, Scharf is best known as the CEO of Visa Inc. from 2012 to 2016, where his strategies for faster payments, fintech partnerships and other key issues may shed light on what Scharf has planned for Wells Fargo.

NAFCU economist: Consumers key in fragile economy

NAFCU's Curt Long attributed the 2 percent economic growth during the second quarter to "a standout performance from U.S. consumers." However, he acknowledged that "there is an undeniable fragility in the economy, and any slippage from the consumer would almost certainly mean a recession is nigh."

‘They Are Coming For You’: Cyber Security Experts Warn Of Potential Threat

LARIMER COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4)– “They are coming for you,” that’s the message behind the Cyber Security Summit in Loveland. The FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center estimates the loss from internet theft, fraud, and exploitation in 2018 topped $2.7 billion. That’s part of the reason why the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office and the Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce gathered online security experts together to take part in the Cyber Security Summit. The goal was to educate small business operators how to protect their valuable information.

Fintech lenders have doubled their market share in 4 years

Fintechs are providing 49.4% of unsecured personal loans as of March, according to a study released Tuesday by credit reporting agency Experian, more than twice the 22.4% share they held in 2015. Borrowers with slightly lower — or near-prime — credit scores (601 to 660) make up a larger percentage of the fintech customer base when compared against traditional banks. Experian said it did not investigate why consumers are increasingly turning to fintechs for loans. But the trend comes as traditional banks are partnering with fintechs to launch digital lending platforms.

Office of Financial Research Picks Up Hiring After Trump Cuts, Director Says

An agency designed to warn policymakers of risks to the U.S. economy is, once again, hiring. The Office of Financial Research — beset by budget cuts and staff reductions under the Trump administration — is now looking to expand to about 150 employees, Director Dino Falaschetti said Wednesday during a House Financial Services subcommittee hearing on financial stability. Staff is now “in the neighborhood of 100 employees,” down from a peak of nearly 220 in 2017, he said. 

Call providers, FCC acknowledge concerns with call blocking

A number of phone service providers and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) acknowledged potential issues with call blocking errors as a result of a new caller identification framework – known as SHAKEN/STIR – during a NAFCU-attended PACE Consumer Protection Coalition meeting Wednesday.

Federal watchdog sues Maryland debt collection company

A federal watchdog agency sued a debt collection company and its owner Wednesday, accusing them of collecting debts without a "reasonable basis" to assert that consumers owed the money. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed its federal lawsuit against Beltsville, Maryland-based Fair Collections & Outsourcing Inc. and other related companies owned by Michael Sobota, of Ormond Beach, Florida.

Quarterly Consumer Credit Trends: Consumer Bankruptcy, BAPCPA, and the Great Recession

This is part of a series of quarterly reports of consumer credit trends produced by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau using a longitudinal, nationally-representative sample of approximately five million de-identified credit records maintained by one of the three nationwide credit reporting companies. This eighth report explores how the volume and types of bankruptcy filings have changed throughout the period 2001-2018, which includes the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act (BAPCPA) and the Great Recession. The report considers changes in the attributes of bankruptcy filers by analyzing credit scores and the amount of debt consumers hold prior to bankruptcy. 

Fintech Lenders Could Hold the Keys to Recession Recovery

After plenty of adaptation for survival over the last few years, it’s been largely smooth sailing for fintech companies in 2019. Global expansion is steadily increasing. Billions of dollars in venture capital funds are flowing into fintech startups. And bank-fintech partnerships continue to flourish as fintech providers and traditional financial services firms seek increased symbiotic collaboration. General economic winds, however, are starting to blow in a different direction, as the stock market has taken some hits, the real estate market has tightened and despite the fed lowering interest rates, economic experts forewarn of a potential recession.

CFPB Announces Additions to Executive Team

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) today announced the following additions to its executive team:   Desmond Brown will serve as the Deputy Associate Director for the Consumer Education and Engagement Division. Mr. Brown has more than two decades of experience working with national and local organizations to increase financial well-being and economic opportunities for consumers. He first joined the Bureau as a program specialist for the Office of Financial Empowerment in 2012. He earned his Masters of Policy Management from Georgetown University, and his B.S. in Political Science from Southern Connecticut State University. 

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