The State of Oregon is fining an online payday lender that ended up charging an Oregon customer more than 800% in interest on a short-term loan. Spokesperson Lisa Morawski says an unlicensed Utah company lent an Oregon consumer $350 and charged them a total of $842 for the 52 day loan. Morawski says the Department of Consumer and Business Services is cracking down on unlicensed payday lenders. "But oftentimes we find that if a business isn't licensed in Oregon they often aren't following Oregon rules and laws governing payday lending. For instance; Oregon caps the annual interest rate at 36% in this particular case the lender ended up charging the consumer an annualized interest rate of over 800% for a loan." This company was fined $10,000 and told to cease and desist doing business in Oregon. If you'd like to protect yourself, make sure a lender is first licensed in Oregon. You can go to the DFCS website at dfcs-dot-oregon-gov or call them toll free at 1-866-814-9710.