Shuttering the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will leave service members who rely on the agency’s accountability initiatives less guarded from scams and financial crimes.

The fate of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB, is uncertain as the agency and its workers have faced a tumultuous month of February so far, possibly leaving consumers with more questions than answers. Here's the latest and how it could affect consumers.

The agency—an unelected regulator with a blank check—has spent much of its short life making things harder for the consumers it set out to protect.