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Some critics have said that agreements between lenders and colleges or affiliated groups can be damaging to consumers, but they may also be able to save them money.

Deals between colleges and universities or groups are often used to generate revenue that is put toward marketing costs, according to a report from USA Today. However, the total amount generated dropped to more than $73.3 million in 2010, down from the more than $84.5 million the previous year, due in large part to new federal regulations on the way those under 21 can obtain new credit cards.

"The new laws regulate marketing to students, but the special card offers still need to be monitored," said Edmund Mierzwinski, consumer program director for U.S. Public Interest Research Group, a non-profit consumer watchdog organization. "While some schools have converted their contracts to simply allow card access to alumni, undergrad students remain a holy grail for card companies."

Many critics worry about that type of marketing because efforts to reduce debt among those who are still in college are having some effect. Currently, the average undergrad leaves school with thousands of dollars in credit card debt across several accounts in addition to their student loans.

Consumers who have seen their financial situations improve in recent months to the point where they are comfortable taking on additional credit card debt once again may still have a difficult time doing so.

Even as the national economy continues to improve, a small amount of all credit card issuers relaxed their lending standards on new accounts during the second quarter of the year, according to the latest Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices from the Federal Reserve Board. In all, just 9.3 percent of all lenders and 16 percent of large banks said their standards "eased somewhat" during the three-month period.

Further, a larger number of banks tightened the limits on new credit card accounts, rather than loosened them, the report said. In all, 11.1 percent of all lenders and 17.4 percent of big ones restricted credit limits, while 8.3 percent and 13 percent, respectively, relaxed them.

Given that a large number of consumers have worked diligently to reduce debt over the last several months or more, many may still be wary of once again adding to their total balances.

One of the nation's largest financial institutions recently began informing borrowers that a popular feature created to help consumers avoid being stuck with fraudulent credit card debt would soon be discontinued.

Discover Financial Services recently emailed many of its credit card customers saying that the Secure Online Account Number program it runs to help consumers avoid credit card fraud will be discontinued as of September 8, according to a report from the Consumerist. The program was used to create unique credit card numbers that could be used for different retailers or even different transactions, so that consumers didn't have to turn over their actual sensitive account information.

The SOAN program is being discontinued because Discover has recently increased its security measures across the board, making those for the popular feature redundant, the report said. However, those consumers who have generated and stored unique numbers for specific online shopping sites will be able to retain those numbers through their card's expiration date.

Online credit card security has become a major issue for many institutions, and many are stepping up measures that will protect sensitive consumer financial information.

Hurricane Irene displaced tens of thousands of consumers and put many in danger of being unable to handle their finances properly. As a result, many lenders are allowing victims to make late payments into their credit card debt with no penalty.

Chase recently announced that it would waive fees for all credit card and banking customers in 13 states up and down the eastern seaboard through Sunday, September 4, according to a report from the Associated Press. This includes credit card due dates, and fees it would charge to banking customers for using out-of-network ATMs or overdrawing their accounts.

Other major credit card lenders, such as Bank of America, Capital One, Citi and PNC, will also waive fees and credit card penalties, but on a case-by-case basis rather than across the board, the report said. Customers facing hardships as a result of the storm should contact their local bank branches to find out if they can receive any such assistance.

One way the banks say they may be able to help affected consumers is by lowering their interest rate temporarily, which may make it easier for them to get out of debt.

When consumers choose to pay for a purchase with their debit card, they are usually asked, "Debit or credit?" But the choice doesn't make much of a difference, except in the way the consumer verifies it – by PIN or signature.

But now, one major U.S. financial institution is launching a card that will make the choice matter, according to a report from the Associated Press. Fifth Third Bank, which is well known throughout the Midwest and Southern U.S. and based in Cincinnati, Ohio, will soon launch its new Duo MasterCard, which allows consumers to load not only their debit card information onto the plastic, but also link it to a credit card account. This means that consumers who want more flexibility in their purchases will be able to take on credit card debt with it, and those who want to keep spending under control can still use it as a normal debit card.

To make a purchase using funds in their checking account, consumers would choose debit as normal, and the card can still be used at ATMs to withdraw money, the report said. However, they would no longer be allowed to sign for their debit transactions, and would have to use their PIN to verify the purchase. But to complete the transaction using their credit card account, the consumer would simply choose credit and sign for it as they would with any other such purchase. However, all online transactions using the card would only be able to be made as credit.

And because this card uses two separate accounts, consumers who use it would also receive separate monthly statements, the report said. Depending on the checking account, Fifth Third Bank charges between $7.50 and $15 for monthly fees, but these are often waived if consumers maintain certain minimum balances. Meanwhile, the credit card account can carry an ongoing interest rate of between 13 and 24 percent, but also comes with a 0 percent introductory rate for the first 12 months.

Meanwhile, MasterCard has not indicated whether it would offer this type of dual-purpose debit and credit card for any other banks, the report said.

This type of card may be useful for consumers who are looking to get out of debt but still need some flexibility in their purchasing power for emergencies.

The rate at which consumers fell behind on their outstanding debt continued to decline in the second quarter of the year, leading to less credit risk nationwide.

Fewer consumers fell behind on their credit card debt and other lines of credit during the second quarter, leading the Credit Risk Index maintained by monitoring company TransUnion to fall 1.9 percent between the first and second quarters of the year. In addition, the new rating of 121.22 was also 5.04 percent lower than index during the same quarter last year.

"The lengthy, broad and steady decline in the Credit Risk Index, which reflects declines in consumer delinquency and debt levels, has placed the consumer credit market on a firmer footing," said Chet Wiermanski, global chief scientist at TransUnion. "This responsible use of credit has given some lenders confidence to ease lending standards and invest more in the acquisition of new credit customers."

In general, consumers have been more conscientious about paying their debts on time over the last year, leading many lenders to see steep declines in their rates of delinquency and default across most types of credit.

The concept of consumers loading their smartphones to make purchases that would normally require them to swipe a debit or credit card is gaining more traction, and companies are ramping up preparations to launch and secure these services.

In the next few months, the first two major digital wallet programs will be launched by some large companies, and competition for adoption among consumers and businesses alike is expected to be fierce, according to a report from the tech news site CNET. Visa's as-yet-unnamed mobile wallet program is expected to launch later this year, likely during the fall, while Google's planned Google Wallet payment system could be available to consumers by the end of the summer.

And while neither company will officially acknowledge that the other is in competition for adoption, it seems that the strategies they're using to launch their respective systems are very similar, the report said. Both programs will be open to any credit card, not just specifically branded ones, and both will likely try to drive more revenues by having targeted advertising and offers from merchants based on consumers' purchase histories. For example, Visa is already pilot testing a program with clothing giant the Gap to offer discounts to Visa cardholders through text messages.

However, Visa is also working to participate in a larger mobile payment system soon to be offered by the nation's largest mobile phone service providers as well, the report said. The ISIS program being offered by AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon will include participation from Visa – the world's largest transaction processing network – as well as its payments competitors MasterCard, Discover and American Express.

ISIS will be tested in the first few months of 2012 in both Salt Lake City, Utah, and Austin, Texas, according to a report from Computerworld. In addition, it's expected that Visa will license its PayWave software to the program. This will likely help to advance the security measures for all transactions made using the mobile payment system and help prevent debt management issues involving identity theft.

Whichever company is the first to be truly successful in the mobile payment industry will likely profit considerably. Analyst estimates show that the mobile credit and debit card payment industry will likely be worth as much as $44 billion annually by the end of 2015, as adoption is expected to grow rapidly over the next few years.

In an effort to entice more companies into taking on credit card debt to better facilitate their transactions, some major lenders are now offering business credit cards that are associated with rewards programs and other perks.

More competition among credit card issuers to entice small business owners into opening accounts for their companies has led some major lenders to begin offering cards with cash back rewards programs, or other perks that can make the cards more affordable, according to a report from Entrepreneur. Since the beginning of July alone, three such new accounts have been offered American Express and Capital One Financial.

Two of these accounts offer straight cash back to cardholders, while the third, offered by Capital One, grants companies lower interest rates based on where their business is based, the report said.

However, these cards for small businesses may be problematic for some because the protections extended to consumer credit cards do not apply to those for companies, meaning the terms of an agreement may be changed without notice, which could make it more difficult to get out of debt.

Many college kids across the country now have credit cards of their own, which may make it easier for them to make day-to-day purchases, but can also saddle them with debt.

Now, a large and growing number of high schools and colleges nationwide are teaching teens responsible money and debt management techniques that will help them to better handle their finances as they move toward financial independence, according to a report from the Pottsville Republican Herald. These classes are designed to help them better understand the situations they get into when obtaining loans and potentially reduce debt they may already carry.

"After reading the statistics and seeing things like more people are dropping out of college because of credit card debt than student loan debt, I just thought we needed to do something," Kathy Loy, a business education teacher, told the newspaper.

Older consumers may have to look to other sources to find out how to get out of debt fast, but all would likely benefit from a sound financial education that can help them to better understand how quickly they can end up in debt.

Many college students are now growing wary of taking on credit card debt and opening new lines of credit, and as a consequence are beginning to shun these accounts.

Fewer college students are now using their credit cards and carrying a debt from one month to the next, according to a report from Tampa, Florida, television station WTFS. Recent statistics from the credit monitoring firm Experian showed that credit card balances for college-aged consumers rose just 0.4 percent in 2010, down considerably from the 13.3 percent growth rate observed three years prior.

In addition, many young adults may now be growing more cautious of these accounts because a larger number of college are teaching financial literacy courses as a requirement to help students stay debt free, the report said.

"Credit cards are a big part of that," University of South Florida financial aid services director Billie Jo Hamilton told the news station. "They tell students if you can wear it or eat it, don't put it on a credit card."

New federal laws have restricted the way in which credit card companies can market and grant credit cards to those under the age of 21.