I absolutely hate it when I’m filling out new patient forms at a doctor’s office, or some other type of official forms, and my social security number is requested. A social security card and the number accompanying it is NEVER to be used for identification, and all too often, doctor’s offices ask for this information just because they can - they don’t need it!

Why am I so touchy about giving out my social security number? I’ve already been the victim of credit fraud once. I was turned down for the very first credit card I ever applied for due to bad credit…credit that was taken out in my name when I was a child! A quick letter to the credit bureau with a copy of my birth certificate was enough to prove I wasn’t out shopping at the age of 5, but it could have been much, much worse. I once worked for an agency that dealt with credit, and oh, the horror stories I’ve heard! We had people put a lock on their credit through the bureaus so that NO credit could be given at all, without written approval.

Lifelock is a company that wants to help people avoid jumping through hoops to protect their credit by:

• Setting up fraud alerts in your name with the credit bureaus.
• Verify these fraud alerts are still in effect every 90 days.
• They get your name removed from credit card pre-approval offers and junk mail lists. (Do you know how easy it is for someone to get into your mail and snag a credit card pre-approval in your name?)
• They send you free credit reports every year from all of the major credit card bureas.
• The items you carry in your wallet are protected with WalletLock™. Lose your wallet, and someone will help you to replace lost and stolen documents, as well as contact the credit card companies to cancel lost and stolen cards.
• If your identity is stolen WHILE are you are member of Lifelock, they’ll help you get your identity, and your life back, at THEIR expense - up to $1,000,000!

How confident is Lifelock that their program works? Not only do they offer a $1 million guarantee, but the CEO publishes his social security number online for all to see. Now, that’s confidence!