Financial experts in North Carolina say credit card and online shopping scams are prevalent year-round, and recommend monitoring your bank account transactions as a daily habit in the New Year.

More than 10,000 North Carolinians collectively lost nearly $100 million to scams in 2021.

Daniel Rathfelder, vice president of card services for Coastal Credit Union, explained ATM skimmers loaded onto point-of-sale devices remain of one of the top techniques fraudsters use to steal card information.

"It is a year-round problem. We're seeing different attacks," Rathfelder explained. "People are doing card testing to see if they can get authorizations through cards, that happens regularly."

According to a report released by North Carolina's Attorney General Josh Stein, there were more than 1,600 complaints filed with the North Carolina Department of Justice last year related to card scams.

People who suspect a scam should call their bank or credit card company and notify them of suspicious charges, and report it to the FBI's internet crime complaint center at ic3.gov, or call North Carolina's consumer hotline at 919-716-6000.

Rathfelder emphasized online communication cannot be verified, and recommended rather than using ads or pop-up chats to make purchases or share information, do a Google search to verify a business through a website.

"There's a lot of texts, online scams, email, direct messages through different applications now; Snapchat, LinkedIn, Facebook," Rathfelder outlined. "All of those are really prone to artificial intelligence bots."

He advised speaking with your credit union or bank on ways to boost card security.

"That's the most prevalent way people are getting scammed right now," Rathfelder stressed. "Set up alerts for transactions -- every transaction if you want -- over zero cents. That's helpful."

Nationwide consumers lost nearly $6 billion to fraud last year, an increase of more than 70% from 2020, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

When you buy a car in California, the most the dealer can charge to process the sales documents is $85 but the cap could be raised to $500 if Senate Bill 791 becomes law.

The bill already passed several committees and is expected to get a vote in the full state Senate this week.

Rosemary Shahan, president of Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety, argued the measure would harm consumers.

"It's a huge giveaway to car dealers, including multibillion-dollar corporations like Tesla, Auto Nation, CarMax," Shahan outlined. "They're the ones that will benefit the most at the expense of California car buyers."

The bill's author, Sen. Dave Cortese, D-San Jose, did not respond to a request for comment by our deadline, but has said in the past car dealers have to do a lot of work processing the sales contracts, and deserve to recover their costs. The bill would allow dealers to charge up to 1% of the sales price or a maximum of $500.

Document processing fees can surpass $1,000 in other states without a cap. Shahan noted some dealers like Carvana do not charge a document processing fee.

"If you belong to AAA, they offer this service of handling, registering the car for free or for a very minimal cost," Shahan pointed out. "When you look at other states, there are some states that have no caps on the document fee, and it's crazy how much the dealers get away with charging people. But if this bill becomes law, instead of having the best cap for consumers, California would have one of the worst."

Shahan added car dealers typically make most of their profits at the "back end" on financing and various add-ons. The California New Car Dealers Association is backing the bill.

The Trump administration is pushing to gut the top U.S. consumer watchdog agency, which alarms some advocacy groups in Arizona.

What's known in Congress as the "One Big Beautiful Bill" would reduce the budget for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau by 70%.

Alex Alvarez, executive director of the advocacy group Progress Arizona, thinks the move will only hurt hardworking Arizonans. Since its creation in 2010, the agency has investigated complaints and created new rules to ensure financial transparency, prevent fraud and hold companies accountable. The bureau saw a 92% increase in complaints between 2023 and 2024, which Alvarez said speaks to the important work being done.

"People are working harder than ever before, are seeing rising costs," Alvarez pointed out. "And instead of giving any kind of support, this Congress is trying to aid the Trump administration's assault on the CFPB, which has returned $21 billion to defrauded consumers in the form of restitution or canceled debts."

Last year, the agency finalized a rule closing a loophole which had allowed financial institutions to reap major profits from overdraft fees. It capped the fees at $5 per overdraft, which the agency claimed would save consumers $5 billion a year.

Last month, Congress voted to overturn the rule. Conservatives argued the bureau imposes unacceptable costs on businesses. The House approved the 2026 budget bill last Thursday, moving it to the Senate for consideration.

Alvarez argued while the bureau is strict, the agency advocates for all consumers and their hard-earned money. He contended they should be able to rely on the government to help keep businesses in check.

"We are asking for the Senate to vote 'no' on the reconciliation bill and protect the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the watchdog that protects hardworking families from financial abuse, predatory lending products and financial fraud," Alvarez emphasized.

Alvarez added Arizonans can reach out to their elected officials to share their views on potential reforms and future of the agency.


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A recent scam using fake Indiana government email addresses is prompting a broader warning to Hoosiers.

The messages claimed to involve unpaid tolls and tricked some people into clicking on links where their personal information could be stolen. Investigators traced the emails to a former state contractor's account which should have been shut down.

Isak Nti Asare, executive director of the Indiana University Cyber Security Clinic, said the breach shows why Indiana must treat cyber defense as essential.

"Cyber security should always be a big thing for us," Nti Asare emphasized. "Not because we're reacting to news of incidents and attacks and vulnerabilities but rather just because understand that in order for us to thrive in the digital age as Hoosiers, we need cyber security."

He added it was not just a contractor mistake; it reflects the need for stronger systems and better planning statewide.

Nti Asare pointed out cyber threats happen constantly, not just when headlines appear. He urged people to stop and think before responding to messages that feel urgent or unusual.

"If somebody bumped into you in the street and said, 'Hey, give me your credit card details.' You would go, 'What?' You'd say, 'OK. Show me a badge. Do you have a warrant?'" Nti Asare explained. "We need to be as cautious as you would be in the physical realm, if not really much more, actually."

Indiana's attorney general urged people to report suspicious emails at IndianaConsumer.com. Experts recommended using multifactor login tools, freezing credit reports when needed and changing passwords regularly.


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