Free 90 Days Identify Theft - www.LifeLock.com for Free - Life Lock
74Do It Yourself LifeLock
LifeLock's spokesperson Todd Davis had his identifty stolen! Apparently, a guy in Texas borrowed $500 from a payday advance company that did not use any of the 3 major credit bureaus to verify his identity. So, when the company called his wife to collect the overdue payment, weren't they surprised!
LifeLock is a company that specializes in protecting your credit from fraud, so you can see where this was bad news! Several people have filed lawsuits against LifeLock for misrepresentation of the services. However, lest we forget that Todd Davis *ADVERTISED* his social security number to practically the whole world, and only had this one incident? For $500? He probably makes that much during breakfast (for the sacrifices he's made to the company, like advertising his social security number to the world).
Were you wondering how he could confidently and overtly advertise his real social security number on TV, on billboards, through a bullhorn on the streets of New York, and other ostentatious means of giving out the one number any normal person doesn't want advertised?
There are ways of protecting your credit that are pretty sound. Advertising it to everyone isn't one of them! Also, you don't have to give your hard earned cash to a company to do it for you. If you're thinking it's not worth the hassle, it's actually very easy and you're just a few clicks away from doing it. Besides, some of the things I'm going to show you how to do, you'de have to do with LifeLock at least once (during setup).
Follow the Steps Below
You can click on each of the pictures to the right to get a full-sized view. Follow the steps below to prevent identity theft and what to do when your social security card is stolen.
Step 1
Go to Equifax's web site. Click on the "Free Report, Security Freeze, Dispute and Fraud Protection" tab.
Step 2
Click on "Explore How" on the "Protect your credit" frame.
Step 3
Click on the "Click Here" link in the "Place a free 90-day fraud alert on your credit file...". Here's the link if you want to avoid the previous steps. I've included them so you don't think you're being pointed to an alternate site.
Step 4
Fill out the info they're requesting, including First Name, Last Name, SSN #, DOB, Current Address, Previous Address, and Email Address.
Step 5
If you check the next box, if a creditor needs to get ahold of you, the phone numbers and contact name you list in this section will be used. Read the text next to the box over and over again until you understand exactly what they mean.
Read their "Terms of Use", and click on the "I Accept" radio button as shown in the diagram. Then click "Submit".
Additonal links
- FTC's Identity Theft Site
This website is a one-stop national resource to learn about the crime of identity theft. It provides detailed information to help you deter, detect, and defend against identity theft.
Additional Information
Apparently, Equifax will share this information to the other two major credit reporting agencies (Trans Union and Experian), so you should not have to do the same thing with them.
Also, set up dates in your calendar to remember to do this every 90 days.
When you place a fraud alert, you're also apparently eligible to obtain another credit report from each bureau, on top of the one free you can get from each bureau already. So, you can get a total of 15 credit reports (5 from each bureau) a year, merely by filling out this one form every 90 days!
This method is not without its hassles. Placing these alerts, like LifeLock, will make your potential lenders go through extra steps before they can verify your credit worthiness. You can provide your cell phone number to your potential creditor to help speed the process, but beware that the simple 5 minute credit checks you may be used to may take much longer.
CommentsLoading...
Hi, Chef!
Yes, I've heard about people selling credit card numbers, but not the part about them buying terrorist type items. I've had A LOT of calls lately from my credit card companies to confirm transactions. One of them keeps shutting my card off, and asking me to call them to confirm recent transactions. This is a good thing, but can be an inconvenience as well.
I have stickers on my cards that people ignore, and I have "Please Check ID" on the back, and some people still don't look.
Here's a story. I must've left my credit card at a fast-food restaraunt or something. I called the credit card company immediately when I found it was missing, and they told me of some recent gas station transactions. They credited those back to me, but I asked them what the address of the gas station where they were using it, and they told me they didn't have that info. What? Why not? If they told me, I could go to the gas station (with the police) and maybe identify the person who was using my card (cross referencing the time stamp of the transaction with the video). Oh, well. Their loss!
Thanks for the comment!
Good stuff!! When my company got bought out some of the computers were stolen. As a result, I got one of these free credit check subscriptions even though I had left the place months ago. Its great to know where you stand with it. My girlfriend wasn't so lucky and found she was delinquint on a purchase made 13 years ago. It was untrue and she called the company who straightened it out. You just never know who's been monkeying with your info.
Thanks for this hub! It was nice to find real information without having to enroll in triple advantage :)
Thanks you. This makes it really easy. Now to just mark my calendar so I remember to renew it every 90 days and I am set. Your efforts are appreciated.
Thank you for your comments! I'm glad the information helped!
Did you hear the latest? Todd Davis had his identity stolen 13 times! "The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) fined LifeLock $12 million for deceptive advertising. "In truth, the protection they provided left such a large hole... that you could drive that truck through it," chairman Jon Leibowitz told Wired." Source: http://www.switched.com/2010/05/20/lifelock-ceo-to
Please remember, however, that Todd Davis advertised his SSN# through various mediums, including TV, radio, billboards, the Internet, etc. If you're making hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of dollars a year in a salary and bonuses, a few thousand dollars that LifeLock will probably reimburse him for is nothing comparitively. So, why the critism? I don't think anyone recommends that you try advertising your SSN# just because you signed up for LifeLock. So, for only 13 incidents costing probably less than $5000 total to happen over three years after advertising your identity on numerous meduims reaching millions, if not billions of people, should not be a red flag.
i have an account will aol so can i sign up for lifelock for free
Chef Jeff 3 years ago
I briefly had someone using my credit card number to buy a few things - they were testing the card. I had cancelled it some months prior, and still don't know how they got hold of it. The credit card company sent me a bill, which I quickly called to refute.
They were very good, started a fraud alert, and took the credit alert off my name. I had proof that I had cancelled the card, they had the records of it, and were surprised that anyone could have used the number. They even checked to make sure they hadn't accidentally reused the number.
The bottom line is - anyone and everyone can be the victim of identity theft. There are still some places that do not check even enough to rule out fraudulant usage of your information.
I also found that until recently if you went to Europe people there might be selling your info to others. Some people found out that their credit had been used by dubious people, perhaps terrorists, to buy some very strange items. Have you heard anything about this?