LifeLock Lawsuit May Entitle You to Compensation

Located in Arizona’s hot and arid city of Tempe, LifeLock has built a booming business on promises to assure your personal and credit reputation and fight off identity thieves. Its claims are now questioned by Hagens, Berman, Sobol, Shapiro, LLP that have filed a proposed class-action lawsuit complaint in the US District Court for Arizona alleging the company misled its clients. Consumers who believe to be members of this proposed class may join the suit.

The Buildup

LifeLock’s CEO Todd Davis has recorded advertising spots where he gives out his social security number (457-55-5462) and claims that unless he were certain that his credit and identity were protected by the company, he would never divulge this most sacred number on national radio and television!

Plenty of celebrity endorsements have jumped on the bandwagon, and the voices of Howard Stern, radio icon Paul Harvey, and even former 2008 presidential hopeful Fred Thompson have advertised LifeLock and its various services.

The LifeLock Guarantee

Seeking to educate consumers about the dangers of identity theft, LifeLock CEO Todd Davis time and again points out that a stolen identity results in countless hours spent on the phone and online, trying to undo the damage caused by lawbreakers.

The LifeLock guarantee spells out that the average consumer is protected up to $1,000,000 in damages and their services are also suggested for children to safeguard even their credit profiles.

How Does LifeLock Work?

$10 per month-about the equivalent of three visits to your local Starbucks-buys you peace of mind and identity protection. LifeLock will, on your behalf, request that the credit bureaus flag your accounts so that special verification requirements are requisite when you or anyone with your information requests credit. This process is repeated every three months.

Furthermore, LifeLock gets your name off the junk mail lists, sends you a free credit report once a year, contacts credit card companies on your behalf if your wallet is lost, and scours the underbelly of the ‘Net for your personal information on known criminal websites associated with the sale of identities.

Sounds Too Good To Be True?

So what’s the buzz all about? According to CNN, LifeLock’s CEO Todd Davis was a bit too overconfident in giving out his social security number and daring identity thieves to poke holes in LifeLock’s superior security features.

Consumers impressed with this marketing gimmick are now suing LifeLock, claiming that the service did not work as indicated, and with egg on his face, Mr. Davis has to acknowledge that they are right-it has failed him, too.

Todd Davis, LifeLock CEO, Subject Of Identity Theft

David Paris, Esq. asserts that he has documentation showcasing that Mr. Davis’ social security numbers has shown up at least on 20 separate occasions when different individuals were applying-and in some cases receiving-driver’s licenses.

A documented case of successful identity theft involving the famous 457-55-5462 social security number has been acknowledged by Todd Davis and a Texas man managed to use it to receive a $500 advance from a payday loan business. Nonetheless, Mr. Davis is steadfast in standing by his business since his credit report is free and clear of other problems and he intimates that had the payday loan business gone through the regular credit bureaus, the $500 loan would not have happened. Yet is this very self imposed limitation not the very crux of the matter?

Truth or Fiction: LifeLock and Others Can Protect Your Identity

This is the kind of statement you can expect to be answered with a resounding “maybe sometimes.” Say what?

Fact: The steps LifeLock takes will flag your credit profiles and help you become aware of any problems associated with someone trying to receive credit with your name or social security number early on.

Fiction: “LifeLock will safekeep your identity.” While some forms of identity theft can be warded off successfully, there are a lot of different kinds that cannot. If your social security number is used on a job application or at a hospital or other medical services facility, you will not be protected since these businesses usually do not run a credit check.

Fact: LifeLock offers an impressive $1,000,000 protection.

Fiction: “The $1,000,000 will reimburse you for damages if LifeLock fails to protect your identity.” Instead, this guarantee comes only into play if you have fully complied with all tenets of the LifeLock service agreement and if the service itself failed. If a crook manages to get around the service and thus the service itself has not failed, you are most likely not going to be getting any financial help.

So…Should You Subscribe to LifeLock And Similar Services?

Yes, if you have the money, it makes you feel better, and you will continue to take your own safeguards against identity thieves. No, if you believe that $10 per month will keep your identity completely safe. LifeLock, Debix, and Trusted ID are all services which come with advantages and disadvantages but not one can completely protect you.

Having subscribed to the Montgomery Wards ID protection plan a long, long, long time ago, I have learned to take a close look at the services offered for the money I am paying.

Much like the old Wards plan, virtually all of the steps taken by LifeLock to protect your identity and credit profile can be taken by you-for free! You are entitled yearly to one free credit report from each credit bureau and you will be wise to get yours; check it thoroughly and resolve any mistakes you note simply by contacting the reporting Credit Bureau in writing.

To participate in the wallet protection service that aids you in canceling credit cards kept in a wallet lost or stolen, you must provide all the information to the safeguarding service. Compile this information for yourself, and in case of such an eventuality, you have everything on hand to make these phone calls yourself-for free.

Placing a fraud alert on your credit profile can be accomplished by you-for free-if you believe there is a good chance someone got a hold of your personal information and might use it fraudulently. Yet did you know that the consistent placing of such flags on consumer credit profiles by the likes of LifeLock is considered illegal and, as reported by MSNBC, is actually one of the grounds for a lawsuit filed by Experian that alleges violations by the company?

Stopping junk mail is another service that was offered by both Wards and also now by LifeLock, but this is a simple step any consumer can take and it is, your guessed it, free!

I spent good money on the protection plan with Montgomery Wards and although I had no reason to use it, it made me feel safer. That said, knowing now that much of the things Wards did back then could have been accomplished by me without paying anything, I cannot help but feel just a bit cynical about an industry that appears to capitalize on the fears-and at times actively fans the flames of these fears-of consumers.

What about the Lawsuit?

LifeLock has had its share of legal trouble and the litigation initiated by Hagens, Berman, Sobol, Shapiro, LLP is bound to cause significant waves not only for the company but also in the identity and credit protection industry.

Sources:
http://www.lifelock.com/
http://www.hagens-berman.com/Lifelock_release
http://phoenix.bizjournals.com
http://www.cnn.com
http://redtape.msnbc.com

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