FTC Forces Changes to LifeLock's Identity Theft Prevention Marketing
Putting the CEO's Social Security number on billboards and on the radio wasn't enough to convince the Federal Trade Commission that LifeLock prevents identity theft. In fact, Richard Todd Davis' own run-ins with fraudsters helped spur the FTC complaint which LifeLock agreed to settle this month for $12 million.

Federal regulators and 35 state attorneys general accused LifeLock of deceptive marketing after responding to numerous consumer complaints. LifeLock's primary service automates the process of filing "fraud alerts" with major credit reporting agencies. The same process can be done for free by consumers, but must be repeated every 30-60 days. Furthermore, regulators told reporters, fraud alerts don't monitor abuse of existing accounts, nor do they prevent identity theft at state or federal government agencies.

In a statement to reporters, Davis noted that LifeLock had already amended its service offerings and marketing campaigns in response to class action lawsuits in 2008. One such lawsuit revealed that identity thieves successfully used Davis' personal information to receive fraudulent drivers' licenses and to amend his Social Security records with incorrect personal information.

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About the Author

joe

Joe Taylor Jr. is an internal business consultant for a Fortune 500 company, who writes about finance, culture, and design. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Communications from Ithaca College.