Making Cents of Money

Making Cents of Money

Podcast by Making Cents of Money

  1. 1d ago

    Episode 132: Avoid Student Loan Scams: How Enforcement Actions Help Borrowers

    Press Release: https://idfpr.illinois.gov/news/2026/idfpr---idfpr-takes-action-against-unlicensed-student-loan-debt-.html Please note: under the Debt Settlement Consumer Protection Act, entities providing debt settlement services in Illinois generally must be licensed by IDFPR, subject to certain statutory exemptions, including for attorneys, banks, and institutions of higher education, among others. Show Notes: Resources for checking licenses and reporting scams • IDFPR license lookup: https://idfpr.illinois.gov/checklicense.html • Illinois Attorney General Student Loan Helpline: https://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/consumer-protection/student-loan-debt-assistance/ • Illinois Secretary of State's Business Entity Search: https://apps.ilsos.gov/businessentitysearch/ • Federal Trade Commission's Fraud Report Portal: https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/ References • Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. (n.d.-a). Student loan servicers. https://idfpr.illinois.gov/banks/student-loan-servicers.html • Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. (n.d.-b). Consumer credit. https://idfpr.illinois.gov/dfi/ccd/ccd-main.html • Illinois Administrative Code, tit. 38, § 145.5 (2023). Purpose and definitions, Debt Settlement Consumer Protection Act rules. https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/illinois/IL-Admin-Code-38-145-5 • Illinois Attorney General's Office. (2026). Student lending. https://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/consumer-protection/student-loan-debt-assistance/ • Know Before You Owe Private Education Loan Act, 110 Ill. Comp. Stat. 983, as amended by Public Act 104-0504 (2025). https://ilga.gov/Legislation/PublicActs/View/104-0504 • Consumer Finance Monitor. (2022, July 27). Illinois provides guides and templates for Know Before You Owe Private Education Loan Act reporting requirements. Ballard Spahr LLP. https://www.consumerfinancemonitor.com/2022/07/27/illinois-provides-guides-and-templates-for-know-before-you-owe-private-education-loan-act-reporting-requirements/ • Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP. (2021, August 26). Student lending: Illinois enacts 'Know Before You Owe' law. https://www.manatt.com/insights/newsletters/financial-services-law/student-lending-illinois-enacts-know-before-you-o • Federal Trade Commission. (2023, June 14). FTC sends more than $3.3 million to consumers harmed by student loan debt relief scam [Press release]. https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2023/06/ftc-sends-more-33-million-consumers-harmed-student-loan-debt-relief-scam • Federal Student Aid. (n.d.). How to avoid student loan forgiveness scams. U.S. Department of Education. https://studentaid.gov/articles/avoid-student-loan-forgiveness-scams/ • Young, J. R. (2026, April 30). Fake student loan debt offers proliferate as federal government rolls back enforcement. The Hechinger Report. https://hechingerreport.org/fake-student-loan-debt-offers-proliferate-as-federal-government-rolls-back-enforcement/

    Episode 132: Avoid Student Loan Scams: How Enforcement Actions Help Borrowers
  2. Sep 4

    Episode 131: How App Design Shapes Financial Behavior and Why it Works, Part 3: Know the Game

    Show Notes: Chaudhry, S., & Kulkarni, C. (2021). Design patterns of investing apps and their effects on investing behaviors. In Proceedings of the 2021 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference (DIS '21) (pp. 777–788). https://doi.org/10.1145/3461778.3462008 Dickinson, D. (2026). Dark patterns and consumer protection law for app makers. Consumer Law Review. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/400702824_Dark_Patterns_and_Consumer_Protection_Law_for_App_Makers Farronato, C., Fong, J., & Larkin, I. (2025). Designing consent: Choice architecture and consumer welfare. Management Science. https://doi.org/10.1145/3736252.3742627 International Organization of Securities Commissions. (2023). Online choice architecture: How digital design is used to influence investors (IOSCO PD794). https://www.iosco.org/news/pdf/IOSCONEWS688.pdf Kahneman, D. (2011). Thinking, fast and slow. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Lai, L. (2024). Playful finance: Gamification and intermediation in fintech. Journal of Financial Regulation, 10(1), 1–35. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfr.2023.100174 Lusardi, A., & Mitchell, O. S. (2014). The economic importance of financial literacy: Theory and evidence. Journal of Economic Literature, 52(1), 5–44. https://doi.org/10.1257/jel.52.1.5 Madrian, B. C., & Shea, D. F. (2001). The power of suggestion: Inertia in 401(k) participation and savings behavior. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 116(4), 1149–1187. https://doi.org/10.1162/003355301753265543 Mathur, A., Mayer, J., & Kshirsagar, M. (2019). Dark patterns at scale: Findings from a crawl of 11K shopping websites. Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, 3(CSCW), 1–32. https://doi.org/10.1145/3359183 Rakovic, M., & Inal, Y. (2023). Dark finance: Exploring deceptive design in investment apps. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 170, Article 102944. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhcs.2022.102944 UK Financial Conduct Authority. (2024, July). Review of online choice architecture and vulnerability [Regulatory discussion paper]. https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/policy/publications/review-of-online-choice-architecture-and-vulnerability/ Savitha, B., & Hawaldar, I. T. (2022). What motivates individuals to use FinTech budgeting applications? Evidence from India during the COVID-19 pandemic. Cogent Economics & Finance, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23322039.2022.2127482 Thaler, R. H. (2015). Misbehaving: The making of behavioral economics. W. W. Norton & Company. Thaler, R. H., & Sunstein, C. R. (2008). Nudge: Improving decisions about health, wealth, and happiness. Yale University Press. Veigas, P. (2023). A comprehensive analysis of the user experience in digital platforms concerning the practice of nudging user behaviour. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, 104, Article 101986. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2023.101986 Report a Dark Pattern with the FDIC: https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/

    Episode 131: How App Design Shapes Financial Behavior and Why it Works, Part 3: Know the Game
  3. Jun 15

    Episode 128: Comparing Private Education Loans

    Pellegrini, A. (2026, January 26). Comparing private student loans. University of Illinois System Student Money Management Center Blog. https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/54213092   Prior Relevant Episodes: Student Loan Management Transitioning in 2026 (ep. 126). https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/280186564 The Role of Loan Servicers (ep. 114). https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/681485881 Back to School: College and Credit (ep. 90). https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/1942070018 The Impact of Compound Interest (ep. 70). https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/650946740   Other References: Hanson, M. (2025, October 21). Total student loan debt in the United States. EducationData.org. https://educationdata.org/total-student-loan-debt   National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. (2024). You have questions, we have answers: Making sense of the student loan changes from OBBBA's RISE Committee. https://www.nasfaa.org/news-item/37700   U.S. Department of Education. (2024). U.S. Department of Education concludes negotiated rulemaking session to implement One Big Beautiful Bill Act loan provisions. https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-department-of-education-concludes-negotiated-rulemaking-session-implement-one-big-beautiful-bill-acts-loan-provisions     University of Illinois System Resources: University of Illinois System. Know what you owe. https://paymybill.uillinois.edu/student_loans/know_what_you_owe   University of Illinois Chicago, Office of Student Financial Aid. Alternative loans. https://financialaid.uic.edu/types-of-aid/loans/alternative-loans/   University of Illinois Springfield, Office of Financial Aid. Private student loans. https://www.uis.edu/financial-aid/types-aid/loans/private-loans   University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Office of Student Financial Aid. Alternative educational loans. https://osfa.illinois.edu/types-of-aid/loans/types-of-loans/alternative-educational-loans/

    Episode 128: Comparing Private Education Loans
  4. May 29

    Episode 127: What happens to the data you feed LLMs?

    Show Notes & References Resources mentioned in this episode: Tither, E. (2025, December 10). ⁠⁠What happens to the data you feed LLMs?⁠⁠ University of Illinois System, Student Money Management Center. https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/1055573584 Chen, K., Zhou, X., Lin, Y., Feng, S., Shen, L., & Wu, P. (2025). A survey on privacy risks and protection in large language models. ⁠⁠Journal of King Saud University – Computer and Information Sciences⁠⁠, ⁠⁠37⁠⁠(7). https://doi.org/10.1007/s44443-025-00177-1 Farooqui, A. (2025, February 12). ⁠⁠Samsung lets employees use ChatGPT again after secret data leak in 2023⁠⁠. SamMobile. https://www.sammobile.com/news/samsung-lets-employees-use-chatgpt-again-after-secret-data-leak-in-2023/ Han, X., Peng, H., & Liu, M. (2025). The impact of GenAI on learning outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis of experimental studies. ⁠⁠Educational Research Review⁠⁠, 100714. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2025.100714 Imperial War Museums. (2018). ⁠⁠How Alan Turing cracked the enigma code⁠⁠. https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/how-alan-turing-cracked-the-enigma-code Kwak, R. (2023, November 30). ⁠⁠Announcing Microsoft Copilot with Data Protection⁠⁠. Technology Services, University of Illinois. https://www.techservices.illinois.edu/2023/11/30/announcing-microsoft-copilot-with-data-protection/ Kwak, R. (2025, November 11). ⁠⁠ChatGPT arrives at U of I⁠⁠. Technology Services, University of Illinois. https://www.techservices.illinois.edu/2025/11/11/chatgpt-arrives-at-u-of-i/ Microsoft 365, Copilot with Data Protection – AI Chat for the Web. (2024). University of Illinois System KnowledgeBase. https://answers.uillinois.edu/133037 OpenAI. (2023). ⁠⁠Privacy policy⁠⁠. https://openai.com/en-GB/policies/row-privacy-policy/ Ray, S. (2023, May 2). ⁠⁠Samsung bans ChatGPT among employees after sensitive code leak⁠⁠. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2023/05/02/samsung-bans-chatgpt-and-other-chatbots-for-employees-after-sensitive-code-leak/ Yao, Y., Duan, J., Xu, K., Cai, Y., Sun, Z., & Zhang, Y. (2024). A survey on large language model (LLM) security and privacy: The good, the bad, and the ugly. ⁠⁠High-Confidence Computing⁠⁠, ⁠⁠4⁠⁠(2), 100211. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hcc.2024.100211

    Episode 127: What happens to the data you feed LLMs?
  5. May 5

    Episode 126: Student Loan Management Transitioning in 2026

    A special thanks to Zach Smith from AccessLex (https://www.accesslex.org/) for joining us to talk about the upcoming changes related to federal student loans in the coming 2026-2027 academic year after a series of legislative changes. Recent Webinars & Prior Student Loan Episode: Student Loan Management [Get Savvy Webinar Recording] from April 1, 2026: https://youtu.be/oMlq8ZFumOY?si=0JiDOhryd5oq4e3d Demystifying the Financial Aid Process [Get Savvy Webinar Recording] from January 28, 2026: https://youtu.be/3nL8Jj_7heM?si=fqbwS9_L4QCOexAj Navigating federal student loan default and debt collection restart [Podcast Episode]: https://www.studentmoney.uillinois.edu/podcast-navigating-federal-student-loan-default-and-debt-collection-restart.html Tools: Federal Student Loan Repayment Wizard (to help federal borrowers understand their repayment plan options): https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/1287368252 Federal Student Loan Repayment Plans: https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/repayment/plans #MakeTheCase Advocacy Campaign. AccessLex: https://www.accesslex.org/tools-and-resources/makethecase?areas_of_focus_tools[19]=19&f=1 Resources for Private Student Loans & Loan Management Generally: Comparing Private Student Loans [Blog Post]: https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/54213092 Increasing ROI for a College Degree [Blog Post]: https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/1768869035 The Role of Loan Servicers [Podcast Episode]: https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/681485881 How the Rule of 72 Can Help You Build Wealth—Or Sink Deeper Into Debt [Blog Post]: https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/446933598 Back to School: College and Credit [Podcast Episode]: https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/1942070018 The Impact of Compound Interest [Podcast Episode]: https://blogs.uofi.uillinois.edu/view/7550/650946740 Other References Federal Register. (2025, January 15). Income-contingent repayment plan options. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/01/15/2025-00724/income-contingent-repayment-plan-options Walter, M. (2026, May 1). ED publishes final regulations implementing OBBBA federal student loan changes. NASFAA. https://www.nasfaa.org/news-item/38809/ED_Publishes_Final_Regulations_Implementing_OBBBA_Federal_Student_Loan_Changes The Pew Charitable Trusts. (2024, March). Default incidence infographic. https://www.pewtrusts.org/-/media/assets/2024/03/defaultincidence_infographic_final.pdf University of Illinois System, Student Money Management Center. (2025). Student loans. https://www.studentmoney.uillinois.edu/learn/studentloans U.S. Department of Education. (2025a). U.S. Department of Education continues to improve federal student loan repayment options, addresses illegal Biden administration actions. https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-department-of-education-continues-improve-federal-student-loan-repayment-options-addresses-illegal-biden-administration-actions U.S. Department of Education. (2025b). U.S. Department of Education opens revised income-driven repayment plan and loan consolidation applications for borrowers. https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-department-of-education-opens-revised-income-driven-repayment-plan-and-loan-consolidation-applications-borrowers U.S. Department of Education. (2026, April 15). One Big Beautiful Bill Act Updates. https://studentaid.gov/announcements-events/big-updates

    Episode 126: Student Loan Management Transitioning in 2026

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Podcast by Making Cents of Money