How to spot a credit-card rip-off

Issuers are taking heat for hidden charges, but there's already an easy way to tell if a new card offer is a deal or not. It's the "Schumer Box," a table in every application named for Sen. Charles Schumer, D-NY who sponsored the 1988 law that requires it.

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By Donna Rosato, Money Magazine senior writer

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Last updated July 30 2008: 7:37 AM ET
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