Consumer Rights and Protection - Essay Example

Moreover, the US Federal Trade Commission helps in the passage of the bill by creating the software “Do Not Track,” which prevents advertisers from monitoring the online activity of web users. The US Consumer privacy bill of rights was formulated after several alleged sharing of consumer information among companies that sell video games and gadgets. This information was randomly solicited and was even just casually asked from visitors who would occasionally visit the sites. The privacy bill will therefore strictly enforce companies to make sure that collected data should not be used for another company, and that disclosures must be presented t consumers at all times.

Moreover, the efforts of the United States government in executing the privacy bill of rights is somehow also based on the fact that European governments have done the same with their web companies, email providers and social networking sites. Summary #2 Based on the article, big US banks have been increasing their rates when it comes to the handling of checking accounts. Among these banks include Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Citibank and JPMorgan Chase. Changes involve the introduction of fees ranging from $7 to $25 a month, which translates to around $300 a year.

Aside from these, the big banks have their own way of charging hidden fees and interchange fees anytime their services are used by their clients, such as in the use of debit cards while making purchases. In fact, consumers have reacted to these changes with anger and resentment especially because they knew how expensively these banks would normally pay their top executives, like Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase who received a salary of $20 million in 2011. The aforementioned big US banks used to charge only small fees for their checking account maintenance.

However, there have been amendments in the bank regulations that caused banks to maximize the number of overdrafts, increasing the number of charges and manipulating purchase sequences so that the customer will have to pay higher fees. The higher fees were in fact viewed by the public as a part of a “regressive and unfair system” and was something that these banks would strategically employ in order to prey on human weaknesses. However, although consumers will surely suffer from having to handle these charges, there is a solution – resorting to credit unions and smaller banks that are friendlier when it comes to fees.

This explains the jolly but somewhat paradoxical nature of the article’s title: “Higher Fees? Let’s Celebrate!” The jolly tone means that the author seems to be telling consumers that had the big banks not overly abused them, they would not have found better options on where to put their money. Now, since bank clients have been transferring their money from the big banks to the small ones, the greedy and inefficient big banks have to suffer as a consequence. This natural effect is explained by the idea that American capitalism usually does not favor the companies who are greedy and inefficient.

Nevertheless, last year only 1 out of 14 Americans were able to make a decision to transfer their checking accounts from the big banks to the smaller banks and credit unions. Thanks to the formulation and passage of many regulations that benefited the consumer: the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act as well as the Consumer Protection Act,