University of Maryland’s Financial Wellness Hub opened in McKeldin Library, offering peer mentoring, workshops and classes on budgeting, investing and loans, aiming to improve financial literacy for students, faculty and staff across campus.

As the Musk-OpenAI trial unfolds, Smith’s Samuel Handwerger says the case centers on nonprofit law, examining whether OpenAI’s shift to a for-profit model with Microsoft may have violated rules barring private benefit and conflicted with its charitable mission.

A case at a volunteer tax site highlights a gap in U.S. tax reporting that leads students to underreport taxable scholarship income, according to Samuel Handwerger, as forms and software often fail to prompt required calculations and the IRS lacks matching data.

The Financial Information Systems and Cybersecurity Forum examined emerging cyber fraud threats, research and policy issues, while honoring the 25th anniversary of the Gordon-Loeb Model. Faculty and experts highlighted evolving scams, data-driven insights and the model’s lasting influence on cybersecurity investment decisions.

As International Fraud Awareness Week marks 25 years, the Smith School’s Samuel Handwerger warns that AI is fueling both false cheating accusations and large-scale “ghost student” financial-aid fraud—revealing how technology now endangers academic integrity, accountability, and public trust.

The University of Maryland’s Justice for Fraud Victims program is partnering with the Frederick County State’s Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit to fight financial crime, following a successful Prince George’s County collaboration, providing forensic accounting and courtroom support for investigations.

Sam Handwerger warns that TikTok is spreading 2025 tax scams, from fuel credit claims to fake W-2s and bogus self-employment credits. With AI voice cloning adding risks, the IRS created CASST and issued alerts urging caution over online tax advice.

Maryland’s first-in-the-nation digital ad tax, once projected to raise $250 million annually for education, has yielded far less and faces multiple constitutional challenges. A federal court ruling deemed its disclosure ban unconstitutional, raising refund risks and fiscal uncertainty.

Trump Accounts, introduced in the 2025 “One Big Beautiful Bill,” offer newborns $1,000 in government-seeded savings accounts for births between 2025–2028. Families can contribute up to $5,000 yearly with tax-free growth and flexible future-use options.

President Trump paused trade talks with Canada over its digital services tax, calling it a threat to U.S. interests. Canada withdrew the tax to restart negotiations. Broader global tax reform remains uncertain, as key international agreements face political hurdles.