CHICAGO, IL, March 28, 2009
/24-7PressRelease/ -- It's more important than ever that Americans know their rights as consumers and exactly how they can take advantage of
consumer protection laws. Recent reports show that consumers are more likely than ever to become victim to fraud and theft as the economy worsens and nearly 13 million Americans are unemployed, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Theft and fraud crimes are becoming more and more common during these challenging economic times. In 2008, identity theft topped the year's list of consumer complaints, according to a report released by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). And the most common form of identity theft is credit card fraud (about 20 percent of complaints). The U.S. Bureau of Consumer Protection fielded almost 6,000 complaints of credit card fraud in 2007.
A recent article on Debtsolutions.com lists six of the most important consumer protection laws that each American should know.
The list includes one of the most important consumer protection laws, the Graham-Leach-Bliley Act (1999), an act intended to protect credit user's personal financial information held by banks, credit unions, financial institutions and security firms. It protects consumers from different forms of identity theft and invasions of privacy.
Consumer protections laws are set up by the federal government to save consumers from corrupt practices, like identity theft, internet fraud, credit card fraud, and other scams. And the most common group falling victim to these corrupt practices is consumers between the ages of 20 and 29, according to the FTC.
Knowing the laws and your rights isn't enough. Consumers have to take action to increase the effectiveness of the protection laws.
"Consumer protection laws regulate business between the consumer and companies," according to the Debtsolutions.com article, 'Six Consumer Protection Laws Every Consumer Should Know.' "However, the credit user must file a report to the appropriate authorities to prevent illegal or abusive transactions. Ultimately, they are the ones who can increase the effectiveness of consumer protection laws."
Staff contribution by Meha Ahmad
About DebtSolutions.com
Debt Solutions offers consumers the unique opportunity to get out of debt using our debt management resources.
Source: DebtSolutions.com
Website:
http://www.debtsolutions.com---
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