- New Identity Theft System 'Locks' Thieves Out and Helps Consumers Prevent Unauthorized Transactions -

Until now, the only way consumers could protect themselves from becoming a victim of identity theft was to shred documents, wait by their mailboxes, monitor credit card statements and avoid credit card offers. LifeLock, a provider of identity theft protection services, today launched the nation's first and only proactive identity theft solution designed to prevent the crime from happening before it occurs.

"Identity theft is part of our lives. But, once a LifeLock client, consumers don't have to worry because they are protected," said Todd Davis, president and chief executive officer of LifeLock. "LifeLock's answer to identity theft isn't reactive -- it's proactive. Our goal is to help consumers protect their identities and avoid becoming a victim in the first place. We've been working very hard for years to perfect a system that could protect consumers and businesses from one of the fastest-growing crimes ever. A credit report, bank or credit card statement is a document that should never be used by an identity thief as a weapon against a consumer," added Davis.

LifeLock guarantees the effectiveness of its system by offering up to $25,000 in reimbursement for any cash losses if an identity is compromised while a LifeLock customer. The company will also resolve any credit issues, no matter the cost or hours, at LifeLock's expense.

Unlike all other identity theft solutions offered by credit bureaus, financial institutions or credit card companies, LifeLock provides a preventative, cost-effective service with comprehensive features and benefits typically not offered by one provider.

Consumers can enroll for the LifeLock identity theft protection service either online at: www.lifelock.com or by calling (877) 543-3565. The cost for the LifeLock service is a $99 set up fee for the first household member and $49 setup for each member thereafter. There is an additional $10 per month per household member for regular monitoring and maintenance.

"LifeLock is a service that consumers desperately need to protect themselves -- it's a comprehensive and proactive solution to a devastating crime," said Luke Helms, former vice chairman for Bank of America and LifeLock chairman of the board. "After personally seeing the horrendous impact identity theft has had on the lives of real people, LifeLock will surely prove to be an invaluable solution for protection against identity theft."

The LifeLock Process

Locking one's identity takes time, attention to detail, deep knowledge of the ways in which thieves penetrate the lives of consumers, how banks issue credit, as well as the laws, procedures and regulations which govern how personal information is released, sold, shared and compromised.

The LifeLock process includes six critical steps to ensuring one's identity is protected:

   --  LifeLock blocks a person's credit so only they can use it -- alerts
       are placed on the credit report with all FOUR major credit bureaus.
       These alerts ensure that if anyone attempts to obtain a LifeLock
       client's credit report, apply for new credit, change an address,
       expand credit lines, open a checking account, get insurance or
       utilities -- clients will be notified by LifeLock to verify approval
       on the transaction.

   --  LifeLock stops pre-approved credit offers -- LifeLock alerts every
       company that sends out pre-approved credit offers with instructions
       to stop sending them. This is a critical step because it's one of the
       biggest opportunities ID thieves use to steal identities. More than
       two billion pre-approved credit offers are sent out every year.

   --  LifeLock drastically reduces the amount of junk mail received --
       LifeLock notifies the companies that sell names to junk mailers to
       have its client's names omitted from their list to stop the junk
       mail. This is important because all a thief really needs is a name
       and address to steal an identity -- the fewer times it's printed, the
       better.

   --  LifeLock monitors its client's credit -- clients receive free copies
       of credit reports when alerts are placed on their accounts. Clients
       are notified immediately if anything on the credit report changes.

   --  LifeLock ensures that everything goes smoothly when applying for
       credit -- because the credit-granting process stops until a person
       from the company accessing a credit report contacts a customer, it
       can be difficult to identify the right person to talk to, especially
       when applying for instant credit. As a result, a person may be
       declined or placed in a pending status. As a LifeLock client, the
       company gets you to the right person right away to make sure that
       everything happens quickly, efficiently and with the least amount of
       delay.

   LifeLock Identity Theft Service Features and Benefits

   --  Credit monitoring through TransUnion
   --  Placement and maintenance of victim's alerts on all four major credit
       bureaus
   --  Cessation of pre-approved credit card applications and most junk mail
   --  Creditor relations
   --  Full-service remediation in the event a client's identity is
       compromised while a client
   --  Insurance against all direct monetary loss incurred by the client up
       to $25,000
   --  Guaranteed effectiveness

  A National Epidemic

There is legislation providing tougher safeguards against it; major initiatives being launched by the nation's largest credit card and financial institutions; entire police task forces to manage the number of complaints; and thousands of prosecuted cases just on identity theft. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), identity theft is the fastest-growing crime in America.

Last year, nearly 10 million people or 4.6 percent of the adult population discovered they were victims of some form of identity theft. Children aren't safe either -- 500,000 children had their identities stolen. Losses to victims and businesses last year exceeded $50 billion and almost one-third was due to credit card fraud. Correcting the damages from identity theft is a long, tedious and expensive process. Most victims of identity theft have to pay an average of $1108 and spend 160 hours over two years trying to fix the financial damage and it still takes years to repair damaged credit.

Identity theft occurs when someone uses another person's information, such as a social security number, credit card number, bank account or other personal identifier to commit fraud. Costs associated with identity theft don't stop with what was taken from a bank account, phone card or credit card. The costs accumulate when legal bills, restoring one's credit and damage to one's reputation are considered. It often takes longer to undo the damage a thief has done than it took them to do the crime. Many consumers don't realize their identity has been stolen until they start receiving collection notices in the mail.

The LifeLock identity theft protection service comes at a time where consumers are growing increasingly wary about their potential exposure to identity theft. After major data security breaches that include ChoicePoint, Bank of America, LexisNexis, DSW Shoes, Polo Ralph Lauren and Ameritrade, the personal information of more than two million Americans including politicians and celebrities, have been lost or stolen. According to The Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, a non-profit group in San Diego, Calif., it's estimated that some four million people's identities were compromised just since mid-February 2005.

About LifeLock

LifeLock is a provider of identity theft protection services. Based in Scottsdale, Ariz., LifeLock developed the nation's first and only proactive identity theft solution designed to prevent the crimes before they occur.

Source: LifeLock

CONTACT: Shari Gold of GOLD PR, +1-949-764-9488, or +1-714-251-0375,
sgold@goldpr.com, for LifeLock

Web site: http://www.lifelock.com/