# I bought Lifelock **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 3, 2014, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767 "2014-03-03T18:02:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/1 "2014-03-03T18:02:00Z")
Target Kickstarter Michael’s Hobby & Craft And now, likely, Sears. All hacked for credit card data, & I shopped at all of them. I just popped for Lifelock. I’m not happy. But I really don’t think anything less is prudent.☹ ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/2 "2014-03-03T18:31:09Z")
> **[LifeLock Review: Is LifeLock Worth it? (2023 Update Review)](https://20somethingfinance.com/lifelock-review/)** > > A 2023 LifeLock review of user benefits that LifeLock offers, free alternatives, pros & cons, refunds, & a 25% off discount promo code coupon. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/3 "2014-03-03T20:19:20Z")
You can ask the big three credit bureaus to lock your accounts. New credit and other uses them require specific consumer permission and, IIRC, all attempts generate notification. Free. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/4 "2014-03-03T20:40:15Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > You can ask the big three credit bureaus to lock your accounts. New credit and other uses them require specific consumer permission and, IIRC, all attempts generate notification. Free. Does that include attempts to get loans off property, by identity theft? ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/5 "2014-03-03T21:25:23Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > Does that include attempts to get loans off property, by identity theft? Not being able to access or modify a credit report blocks an awful lot of financial shenanigans - if nothing else, you will get notified of the attempts while things like an RE loan was being processed. I don’t know that it’s an absolute preventative. But then, LifeLock has a lot of detractors and it’s easy to point out that they are essentially reselling free or readily available services. If it’s worth the cost to you, fine… but I wouldn’t use it as an example to turn your back on your finances - check credit card charges when the statements arrive, pull your own credit reports annually, etc. If you do all the reasonable due diligence, there isn’t much left to pay a protection service for. They also work on no little use of scare tactics, too. Do you really think you’re exposed to bogus property loans, somehow? Nothing I’ve ever worried about. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/6 "2014-03-03T22:13:12Z")
My mother fell for this scam. I keep trying to convince her to Google “company name” and “scam” before signing up for anything. The old Wikipedia page on the founder was amazing. But somehow all the negative stuff about him keeps getting erased. I wonder how that happens.:dubious: I really like their guarantee: It only covers things that their software is designed to catch. So, if their software is an empty program, it does nothing at all, you have no recourse! “Crooks did X? Well, let’s see, our program wasn’t designed to catch that. Sorry.” ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/7 "2014-03-03T22:43:30Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > You can ask the big three credit bureaus to lock your accounts. New credit and other uses them require specific consumer permission and, IIRC, all attempts generate notification. Free. I think it varies by state – my wife and I recently froze our credit and it was $3 per credit bureau, so $18 total for both of us. I haven’t read anything that mentions the notification policy. ETA: apparently it is free if you’ve been a victim of identify theft. Judging from Experian’s description, at least, it doesn’t sound like they do any sort of notification when an attempt is made to access the credit file - they just inform the lender that it’s frozen. > **[Expert advice for your best financial life](https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/)** > > Discover the knowledge and tools to help guide your journey. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/8 "2014-03-03T22:53:12Z")
I recently joined [creditkarma.com](http://creditkarma.com), which is free, and the only thing they do is to throw credit card offers at you when you are on the site. So far they haven’t emailed me any spam or anything. You can see your credit score for free (one of the main three, I forget which one) and you can sign up for alerts that will let you know if there is any activity on your credit report. This seems ok to me, but if anyone has any bad experience with this outfit, I’d like to hear about it. Roddy ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/9 "2014-03-03T23:11:18Z")
Cancelled. Allegedly. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/10 "2014-03-03T23:21:25Z")
Target offered some kind of monitoring for free. I don’t remember what it was, but you could take them up on that if you’re worried. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/11 "2014-03-03T23:37:37Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Target offered some kind of monitoring for free. I don’t remember what it was, but you could take them up on that if you’re worried. This. We got hit by Target and two other recent financial data break-ins, and all of the affected merchants offered some substantial protection option. I am beginning to think that such third-party protection is no more optional than an antivirus on computers… and I ran for years into the virus era without a problem, scoffing mildly at people who said it was a big issue. My AV reports many deflected problems a day now. Personal finance anti-malware is probably a good idea, starting now. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2014, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/12 "2014-03-03T23:57:55Z")
still no confirmation email. It was due around 30 minutes ago. ---
**Author:** ![Truman\_Burbank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@Truman\_Burbank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Truman_Burbank)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/13 "2014-03-04T01:14:17Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > Not being able to access or modify a credit report blocks an awful lot of financial shenanigans - if nothing else, you will get notified of the attempts while things like an RE loan was being processed. > > (SNIP) > They also work on no little use of scare tactics, too. Do you really think you’re exposed to bogus property loans, somehow? Nothing I’ve ever worried about. FWIW, my neighbor across the street was victimized by ID/property theft, and his house was “sold” out from under him. It eventually got untangled, and the perps actually got caught and sent to prison, but what a headache. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2014, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/14 "2014-03-06T08:22:17Z")
Apparently the CEO of [LifeLock](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life_lock#Controversies) had his own identity stolen when he tried to demonstrate how effective it was. :smack: And one of the co-founders was involved in some identity theft of his own. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2014, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/15 "2014-03-07T02:53:39Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > Cancelled. > Allegedly. Someone took the advice of another poster without a fight? Am I on the right message board? ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2014, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/16 "2014-03-07T07:58:05Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > But somehow all the negative stuff about him keeps getting erased. I wonder how that happens.:dubious: [Oh, you mean this stuff:](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LifeLock#Robert_J._Maynard_Jr.) > [@](#): > > Robert J. Maynard, Jr., one of the co-founders of the company, resigned in June 2007 amid questions about his past and the integrity of his story regarding his founding of LifeLock.[26] > Maynard spent several days in a Maricopa County jail in 2003 because of an unpaid $16,000 casino marker from The Mirage hotel and casino resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. Under Nevada law, casino markers are considered the same as checks. According to Maynard, the unpaid casino loans were made by someone who stole his identity, forcing him to spend $20,000 and make many phone calls to clear his name, giving him the idea of LifeLock as a way to help others from being victimized. An investigation by the Phoenix New Times, however, verified the $16,000 casino marker actually was his. Video recordings showed that Maynard was at The Mirage at the time of the loan; The Mirage also had a copy of Maynard’s Arizona driver’s license when it made him the loan, confirming the debt was his. The charges were ultimately dismissed after Maynard repaid the marker, and Maynard has no criminal record. Maynard no longer has any affiliation with LifeLock.[1][27] > The Phoenix New Times also found that Maynard had been banned for life from the credit-repair industry after an agency he owned was shut down for numerous deceptive practices. It also found evidence that he ordered an American Express credit card in his father’s name and accumulated $150,000 in fraudulent charges. That allegation was eventually denied publicly by Maynard’s father and reported by the Times.[1][28] ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2014, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/17 "2014-03-07T11:47:09Z")
[Don’t waste your money on credit monitoring services](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peTWkXkHUow). Instead, freeze your credit. [Here](http://www.clarkhoward.com/news/clark-howard/personal-finance-credit/credit-freeze-and-thaw-guide/nFbL/) is a guide. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2014, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-lifelock/682767/18 "2014-03-07T23:53:25Z")
My account is closed! Sheesh. :rolleyes: I’m one of the rare Board members who actually take advice. And I did.