If you don’t want to become a victim of identity theft, there are 10 states you don’t want to live in – and Arizona ranks at the top for the second year in a row.

Ranked by the Federal Trade Commission, Arizona topped the list with the most identity theft complaints, with 142.5 victims per 100,000 people. Nevada, with 125.7, and California, with 122.1, followed close behind.

The numbers aren’t an accurate indicator, since the FTC’s database relies on reports from victims, but it’s interesting to note that the same states make the top 10 each year, while those at the bottom also remain stable.

The rest of the top 10 includes Texas (117.6), Colorado (95.8), Florida (92.3), New York (92.0), Washington (91.1), Oregon (87.8) and Illinois (87.6) North and South Dakota round out the complete list by coming in at the bottom.

While identity theft can target consumers in any location, thanks to the mobility of computers, many thieves favor high population areas, due to the ready availability of mail and trash to go through in order to obtain personal information. Lots of people who steal personal information no longer use it themselves – it’s much more profitable to sell it on the black market.

But thanks to LifeLock’s Command Center™, you can be sure your information is protected. Not only will LifeLock monitor the Internet and file-sharing networks to be sure your information is safe, but they’ll also check for payday loan, sex offender, public records, court records and change of address activity. If anyone tries to buy or sell your information, or use it illegally, you’ll be notified immediately.

One part of the Center’s services is eRecon™, which specifically searches for the illegal selling or trading of your personal information. LifeLock will monitor for any activity, notify you immediately if any is found, and will take whatever steps are necessary to be sure the situation is resolved.

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LifeLock complaints and the FTC settlement: What’s the real story?

There’s an interesting blog post at GuardMyCreditFile.com regarding LifeLock’s recent settlement with the Federal Trade Commission. The website belongs to the American Consumer Credit Education Support Services (ACCESS), a non-profit consumer advocacy organization whose primary purpose is to disseminate credit education information and assistance to the public.

In the article, the ACCESS author addresses the FTC’s principle complaints against LifeLock: That LifeLock’s CEO, Todd Davis, assured their 1.6 million members that LifeLock provides ironclad, absolute protection against identity theft. Secondly, the FTC took exception to Davis’ flagrant display of his personal Social Security number in print ads, TV commercials, the company website—even on the side of a truck in Manhattan. The FTC asserts Davis misused his own Social Security number.

Both of these allegations are feeble. If LifeLock presented its services as absolute protection against identity theft, why would the company include a $1,000,000 Total Service Guarantee to assist in a members’ recovery and identity restoration if they become identity theft victims while they are LifeLock members? Doesn’t that constitute an admission of their service’s potential fallibility as well as their confidence in its quality?

The author details an instance in which LifeLock applied their Total Service Guarantee in the ID theft recovery of a member whose identity was stolen years before becoming a member. (Statement of full disclosure: I am a LifeLock member, and decided to become one after hearing similar stories that portray the company’s policy of doing what’s right, not just what’s promised.)

The second complaint regarding Davis’ misuse of his own Social Security number is equally bewildering. The level of consumers’ identity theft risk resulting from a data breach is determined by the specific compromised information.

For instance, if only names and addresses have been improperly accessed, the risk level is considered minor. The most serious risk occurs if consumers’ personally identifying information, i.e., Social Security numbers, are disclosed.

When it comes to personally identifying information, Social Security numbers are penultimate; they are the mother lode, the keys to the castle, the one bit of information we are advised to protect most vigorously. As such, is there any other bit of personally identifying information more personal? Is there any other bit of personally identifying information consumers “own” and are entitled to disclose or not?

Upon thoughtful consideration of the FTC’s complaints, the ACCESS writer is led to question the impetus of the FTC’s case. There have been millions of complaints against other companies—specifically, credit reporting agencies—that also offer identity theft protection services, compared to the 200 the FTC claims to have received from dissatisfied LifeLock members Why was LifeLock singled out?

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Imagine you receive a collections notice from a hospital 1,000 miles away … in a city you’ve never visited … for a surgery you’ve never had … for a health problem you don’t have … and the notice says you owe more money than your house is worth.

You have to take immediate action, but be warned: Whoever had the surgery might be recovering better than you will.

Start with the financial impact.

Step 1. Place a fraud alert on your credit reports, and review your credit reports.
Step 2. Close your credit card accounts and open new ones with new PINs and passwords. Talk to the fraud department with each company.
Step 3. File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission and print copies of your FTC ID Theft Complaint Form.
Step 4. File a report with your local law enforcement. Ask them to incorporate the FTC Complaint Form.

Correcting errors in your medical records will be harder, and might be impossible. Worse still, misinformation in your file might be life threatening. The same HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) Act intended to protect your medical privacy might work against you because once you indicate that someone else’s medical information is in your file, his or her privacy must also be protected.

Also, any medical providers who didn’t put the erroneous information in your records are not obligated to correct it, nor are insurance companies.

The information in your record might have been sent to a laboratory, a surgeon, a medical specialist, a medical imaging center, an insurance company, a hospital, an anesthesiologist, a home health provider, a physical therapist and a pharmacy.

Patients with primary care doctors with whom they have a good relationship might find them to be their best ally because all medical information should be copied to their offices.

You’re definitely going to need an ally.

Visit LifeLock.com to learn more about the comprehensive services they’re providing to nearly 1.5 million members. Enroll using the LifeLock promotion code DEFENSE and pay only $9 a month.

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