This means the people best able to defend themselves against illegal shakedowns are less likely to be targeted. Instead, collectors husband their resources so they can use them "to do abusive and frequently illegal shakedowns of the people the legislation was meant to benefit."

Here's how the market works. If you become delinquent in meeting your credit card payments ("delinquent" has a flexible meaning, varying with each issuer), then your debt will be sold to a collector.

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