You might recognize the name Todd Davis from LifeLock commercials and billboards. In fact, you may also recognize his Social Security number from the same places. Davis is the CEO of LifeLock identity theft protection, who demonstrated his unwavering loyalty to the product by publicizing his SSN in order to prove how fail-safe it was.
Well, it didn’t work out so well considering his identity has been stolen a whopping 13 times since the ad campaign began in 2007. Let’s take a look at the numerous ways Davis put his identity in jeopardy and how we can learn from his mistakes.
Okay, it may seem obvious, but you may not realize how some of your everyday actions equate to doing just this. Throwing out financial statements without shredding them, banking online without internet security software and other careless behaviors are an easy way to put your personal information in someone else’s hands.
You may think the chances of someone actually rifling through your garbage for documents or hacking your computer are slim, but they’re really not. A survey by Javelin Strategy & Research, a financial services research firm, found an estimated 9.1 million Americans had their identities stolen in 2008 by thieves obtaining personal information via the internet or other means. That is a very large number of people.
Don’t make it so easy for criminals to find this information. Even the best identity theft protection services can only go so far in protecting your personal information. You have to put some effort toward protecting yourself as well to stop identity theft from occurring.
As stated, you can’t rely solely on a third-party service to keep your identity and financial situation in tact–you are just as responsible for monitoring and safeguarding your financial and credit activity. Davis makes a fine example of this fact.
Many of the identity theft incidences would have been detected by Davis a lot sooner, and damage likely minimized, if he had bothered to review his credit report regularly. In one case, an Albany resident used Davis’ social security number to open a cell phone account and rack up charges without paying them back.
Unfortunately, he didn’t find out until a year later when the bill went to collections and he was finally contacted. Monitoring credit reports from the three major bureaus regularly would probably have alerted him to the unusual activity, or at least the 12 other occurrences.
Just because a man on television tells you a product works, doesn’t mean it’s true. LifeLock proudly proclaimed it would extend customers a $1 million guarantee for any money they lost due to identity theft in its ads, but that promise turned out to be completely bogus. Anyone who bothered to read the terms of the contract would have found that LifeLock doesn’t actually promise to pay anyone anything and doesn’t cover losses due to phishing or other common ways of tricking people into giving out personal information.
As with any product or service, extensive research and comparison shopping is essential to finding the one that meets your needs best. There are plenty of scams out there, so always read the fine print and weigh similar offers against each other to be sure you’re getting the best service for your money.
There’s no doubt that credit monitoring and identity protection services can be a valuable tool in safeguarding your personal information and assets, but as Todd Davis teaches us, the most valuable tool of all is your own knowledge. Don’t be passive when it comes to your identity–learn how to protect yourself.
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