Hilarity in the news...

[Leverage87]

Ok, well this is usually JWBL's thing, but I heard about this on my local morning radio show, and had to find it.

Ever heard of Lifelock? The Identity Theft Protection company? Yeah, their big hook is that Todd Davis, their CEO broadcasts his actual SS number, claiming he is untouchable because of lifelock. Bullshit. He recently got ripped off by a texan grifter with an IQ in the double digits (Average IQ for people is between 100 and 110, if I remember right) so enjoy.

http://idtheft.about.com/b/2007/07/27/256753.html

"LifeLock CEO Todd Davis is Identity Theft Victim After Posting his Social Security Number Online

I never really understood the value in LifeLock's CEO Todd Davis placing his Social Security number on the company's Web site. Sure, I easily recognized the marketing ploy behind it, but the "security guy" in me found it irresponsible and frankly, quite silly. I always thought that it not only sends the wrong message to those so eagerly wanting advice on how to protect themselves from identity theft, but that it also placed the credibility of LifeLock at risk. After all, he was essentially challenging any crook to steal his identity. Albeit your Social Security number is just one piece of personally identifiable information, it is a pretty significant piece of information that should be guarded fiercely and Todd Davis should be setting a better example than posting it online for all to see.
Not surprisingly, Todd Davis can now say that he too is an identity theft victim. It seems as though a crook has used his Social Security number to obtain a check-cashing loan in the amount of $500.00 from a Ft. Worth Texas business. LifeLock's primary service is one that assists their customer's with placing fraud alerts with the three credit-reporting agencies. A fraud alert is supposed to indicate to a creditor that something is amiss. When they are reviewing your credit file and see such an alert, they then are supposed to contact you to validate that you, and not a crook, is seeking credit. Though such an alert should prevent a crook from opening new accounts in your name, if the creditor does not run a credit check or ignores the alert, it does not do any good. In the identity theft incident of Davis, the check-cashing operation did not run a credit check to give out the loan, and the crook was able to get a small loan in Davis's name.

Though a fraud alert can provide some value in preventing a crook from opening new accounts in your name, there are obviously some gaps. If a creditor extends credit without checking your credit report or they ignore the fraud alert a new account can still be opened in your name. It is also important to understand that while a fraud alert might help with new account fraud, it does not help with other forms of identity theft. If you are serious about protecting your precious name, you need a more comprehensive approach to protecting your personal information.

Though Davis is hardly admitting that it was a mistake (he still keeps his Social Security number posted on LifeLock's Web site), he must be at least a little embarrassed that he now is a victim. Then again, now LifeLock can now truthfully say that one of their C-Level executives is an identity theft victim. Considering Davis' background in marketing, I am sure that he will put that to good use. "


Also, I couldn't find the exact site where the radio show got its news, but they say that Davis send a crew of cronies over to the guys house, and strongarmed him into signing a confession, which the DA promptly through out because of coercion.

[Leverage87]

This definately needs a bump