The Biden-Harris Administration student debt relief initiative could benefit as many as 40 million Americans. Today, the White House announced ongoing and expanded efforts across the Administration to combat scams and misinformation, including educating borrowers about how to protect themselves against scams and accelerating efforts to share scam complaints with states.
One of the most critical ways to prevent scams and protect borrowers from being taken advantage of is developing a clear, simple, and secure site for borrowers to apply for debt relief and have the most up to date information from trusted sources, such as the Department of Education, Federal Student Aid, and other Administration agencies. In addition to this work, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) have committed to working together to hold scammers accountable if they take advantage of borrowers. This commitment builds upon their recent work to take action against student loan scammers. Over the course of the last 18 months, the FTC has reached nearly $30 million in settlements that included refunds for tens of thousands of student borrowers who were illegally charged up front fees and falsely promised reduced or eliminated student loan payments. Earlier this year, the FTC won a $7.5 million judgment against Arete Financial Group and permanently banned the company from the student loan business for illegal up front and monthly fees. The CFPB…
