Will LifeLock Save Your Bacon?

Do you use NortonLifeLock or one of its competitors? If not, how do you protect yourself from ransomeware?

One thing I do is keep credit files at Equifax, Trans Union, Experian and Innovis frozen (not simply locked.) It’s really not a big deal at all to unfreeze if I want to apply for credit. It only takes a few minutes to unfreeze/refreeze. And, it helps to ensure that new credit can’t be open in my name by someone else.

I also review my credit files regularly. AnnualCreditReport.com usually gives you one freebie per “big three” bureau per year. During Covid-19, they’ve been offering them weekly, though. There are several other services that also provide credit file details, some at no cost, including some banks.

I am a retiree so my situation may be simpler than most. I have frozen my credit with all the credit services I could find (thank you Bob for the article I used to find most of them).

There is nothing I can do to prevent some miscreant from using my ID during the commission of a crime other than to provide proof that I could not have been the person who committed the crime by verifying my location at the time of the crime or (hopefully) by not fitting the description of the suspect (if one was provided by witnesses or security video).

I an old and have difficulty walking very far so the likelihood that I would be physically capable o committing many crimes may also work in my favor. In the end, all I can hope for is that our legal system works when/if this ever happens to me.

My2Cents,

Ernie

You do not have to prove it WASN'T you.
They have to prove that it WAS you.

Mike,
They only have to prove it WAS you in court. A lot of damage has been done to a lot of people who were accused but not guilty by the media, government agencies and others without one shred of evidence the accused had done anything wrong at all! Look up Richard Jewell who was hounded to death for the Atlanta Olympics bombing when he was actually the hero who saved many people that day.
Reg

I subscribed to Lifelock for three years and eventually quit because it just did not work. In the three years I had my social security benefits account scammed twice and independently had two incidents of credit card fraud (different cards). In these four incidents, Lifelock was totally unaware of anything amiss. The credit card issuers caught and blocked the unauthorized transactions using their algorithms. The social security benefits events were discovered when my bank sent me confirmatory letters of the (fraudulent) changes of my direct deposit agreements. A trip to my local SS office was needed to straighten things out. Lifelock was oblivious to all this.

Sale of Cabin. When I sold my cabin in the local mountains, I received a letter from the District Attorney's office wanting to know if I had actually sold it, and not some imposter. (In Southern California, 70 miles east of L.A., our local DA and law enforcement protects us. They are not "woke" in this part of California. Thank God!

Fraud. When I subscribed to Country Living magazine and never received it, I called customer service. I was advised that an individual in Mexico was receiving my magazines. The man in Customer Service told me that he knew of a company who could make certain this individual could not get access to my computer again. That he would "fix" the problem. Later, the individual in Las Vegas told me that he had resolved the problem, and wanted me to mail him a check in the amount of $700. I never sent him a a check. He called me demanding the $$. So I asked him to email me an invoice, including his name, which he did. He phoned me a few days later demanding payment. I advised him that I would report him to the District Attorney if he ever called again. That was the last time I heard from him.

Bank of America monitors my account and has notified me on several occasions about suspicious activity. B of A reverses the charges if I identify that they were not mine.

Ransomware. My computer system was attacked by Ransomware a couple of years ago. They destroyed all my art (I'm an artist) that was saved. In infected all my files. I had to get a new computer. I NO LONGER OPEN ANY EMAILS UNLESS I KNOW THE INDIVIDUAL, OR COMPANY WHERE I DO BUSINESS.

It's a dangerous world out there!

After using LifeLock for several years following the Experian hack, I discontinued it. Last year, 2 different credit cards were hacked after online purchases. One bank notified me immediately. The other one, I caught. I have my credit reports frozen. I check my bank accounts almost daily. Lifelock turned out to be an unnecessary service. All it did was provide some extra assurance for a few years following the Experian hack.

Bob,
Is there any legal recourse against these entities who either give away your personal information without your knowledge, or have insufficient cyber security in place? To my mind, both these circumstances are either culpable negligence, or fraud.

Repairing the damage done by identity theft is a years-long, painful, and expensive process. Some things that you never did may remain on your record forever. In one case, a sex offender used another man's identity, and the innocent man was told by authorities that his name can NEVER be removed from databases of sex offenders.
Scammers are the scum of the earth but if the government agency can't or won't or does not care
to remove your name from the register of the Sex offenders, then they are not much better than the scammer themselves.

As Bob noted, the Lifelock legal agreement is long and complex. I asked them a simple question--if someone managed to get into a bank account and withdraw funds, would lifelock replace the funds? Lifelock refused to answer and instead sent me their 11,000 word terms of service. That ended my consideration of lifelock--that I could not get a simple answer to a simple question. Now, I use virtual credit card numbers online or on the phone. These are only good at that merchant and I can set the dollar and time limit for the transaction. If someone steals it, it is useless. I also have frozen all of my credit accounts.

Bob, thanks. This is another great article to live by.

I had LifeLock for a number of years. I applied for credit to make a purchase. I heard nary a peep from LifeLock, but my free app CreditKarma immediately alerted me that someone had applied for credit in my name.
I called LifeLock and asked for an explanation. Two people I talked with were unable to explain why they did not catch the credit application.
I CANCELLED LIFELOCK AND HAVE NEVER LOOKED BACK. HOW DO YOU SPELL RIPOFF?
I have since frozen my credit files.

Thank you for all that you do to keep us abreast of internet spoofs with big personal/financial consequences.
If LifeLock elixir is just a bottle of placebo, as you discuss; then, what would be a working prescription for 'baconitis'?

I use LegalShield's IDShield. Have so for last 20 plus years. It covers you and spouse plus 8 kids under 18. Have you checked your kids SS#? You would be surprised the number of kids that have their credit comprised. 3 bureaus, 1 mill coverage less than $35 a month. Liked it so much I became an Independent associate. www.accesstothis.com
They been voted best coverage for last couple of years.