Andre Yoskowitz
20 May 2010 11:42
LifeLock, the ID protection firm that last month was hit with a $12 million fine for "deceptive advertising" has just gotten another hit to its reputation this week.
The company, which has a "$1 million guarantee," says it will spend up to $1 million on any subscriber if the service fails to protect their ID. LifeLock costs $15 per month.
As a publicity stunt to show off the effectiveness of the product, CEO Todd Davis publicly showed off his name and social security number, while saying he is also a LifeLock member.
This week, it is being reported Davis has had his identity stolen 13 times since 2007. In 2007, Davis said: "I'm glad to take the center stage to put mine out there as example, because then we can tell people you can take steps to make this useless to criminals."
Within weeks, Davis' identity was stolen and a man in Georgia used his account to open an AT&T Wireless account, with a bill over $2300.
That was just the beginning, however. The Phoenix News Times is reporting that Davis has had his ID stolen at least 12 times since, with people taking out small loans, Gap credit cards, Verizon wireless accounts and even paying off their energy bills with his name.
After the report, Davis responded: "We have always said that no one can completely stop identity theft, including LifeLock. Just because we say protect, we aren't saying prevent."
Ouch. Why would anyone pay for your service Mr. Davis if you cannot prevent ID theft?