The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and LifeLock have reached a $100 million settlement regarding LifeLock’s violation of a 2010 federal court order that required the company to protect consumers’ personal information and stop its deceptive advertising. This settlement is the largest monetary award the FTC has obtained in enforcing an order.
“This settlement demonstrates the Commission’s commitment to enforcing the orders it has in place against companies, including orders requiring reasonable security for consumer data,” said FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez. “The fact that consumers paid LifeLock for help in protecting their sensitive personal information makes the charges in this case particularly troubling.”
In the lawsuit filed by the FTC, allegations were made that LifeLock violated the 2010 order in four different ways:
- LifeLock failed to establish and maintain a comprehensive security program to protect users’ sensitive personal information including their social security, credit card, and bank account numbers.
- LifeLock used false advertisements claiming it safeguards consumers’ confidential information using the same security as financial institutions.
- LifeLock used false advertisements promising consumers that they would receive alerts “as soon as” LifeLock had any indication that the consumer could be the victim of identity theft.
- LifeLock failed to abide by the 2010 order’s recordkeeping requirements.
The settlement requires LifeLock to deposit $100 million into the registry of the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona. From this deposit, up to $68 million can be used to compensate class action consumers who were injured by LifeLock’s actions. Any amount remaining after consumers in the class action settlement or through settlements between LifeLock and state attorneys general will be used by the FTC in further consumer reparations.
In addition to the settlement’s monetary provisions, recordkeeping provisions similar to those in the 2010 order have been extended to 13 years from the date of the original order.
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