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  • Campen, Jim. "How To Take On The Card Sharks -- And Win!" Dollars & Sense 309 (2013): 20-23. Business Source Complete.
    • The article discusses the U.S. Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure Act (CARD) Act of 2009 and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) designed to protect consumers against the exploitative practices of credit card companies. Topics covered are reduction of late and over-limit fees, cost of credit and credit card banks. Also mentioned are the credit card companies' promotional interest rates, penalty rate and deceptive marketing.
  • Gernster, Lisa. "Pick The Best Credit Card For You". Kiplinger's Personal Finance 67.2 (2013): 63. Business Source Complete.
    • The article offers personal finance advice on how to choose a credit card and discusses criteria including interest rate, fees, and rewards such as points or miles.
  • Silver-Greenberg, Jessica, and Ben Elgin. "The College Credit-Card Hustle." Businessweek 4093 (2008): 38-42. Business Source Complete. .
    • The article discusses how U.S. universities and alumni associations are selling the personal information of students for profit. Some universities and alumni groups received larger payments if students used a school-branded card more frequently. Statistics on student debt and a chart listing various deals between credit card companies, universities, and alumni associations is presented including the Universities of Minnesota, South Florida and Michigan.
  • Hardeman, Bethy. "The 3 Most Common Credit Report Errors". U.S. News Digital Weekly 6.9 (2014).
  •          The article discusses the common errors in consumer credit reports. These are identity errors, incorrect account details, and fraudulent accounts. The major credit bureaus are Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Consumer data that are maintained in the databases of credit bureaus include personal information, account information and payment history. Example of incorrect account details include wrong credit card limit and origination date for mortgage.

Recommended Websites

  • Credit Cards -- from the University of Minnesota.  Specifically geared to students, this guide discusses what you need to know and what credit card companies do not want you to know.
  • Free Annual Credit Report -- The Federal Trade Commission has authorized the three major credit reporting agencies to offer consumers ONE free credit report EACH YEAR.  Beyond that, the three major companies and other organizations will try to SELL you reports.  Be aware of the conditions when you go in.  This link goes to the FTC rather than the destination report site at annualcreditreport.com so you can read their warnings and Q&A sections first.
  • Credit and Loans -- Also from the FTC.  Can you get your percentage rate lowered?  How can you identify a credit card scam?  Are any of those add-on protection features worth the extra fees?
  • Consumer Financial Protection Bureau -- Information about all types of consumer financial products, from credit cards to mortgages.  Includes a searchable database of consumer complaints received by the Bureau, and you can register your own complaints about consumer financial products here.