You've seen the ads - with bozo CEO, Richard "Todd" Davis, touting that their product makes your personal info so secure, he's put his own social security number up in Times Square.

Actual Lifelock customers have found the results to be somewhat less than stellar, leading to a class action against the firm.

Oh, and the Lifelock CEO's social... (wait for it) ...is currently being misused by maybe 20 different identity thieves. Also, there is the small matter of a Lifelock co-founder siting in jail for unpaid gambling debts.

Get the sad skinny at The Consumerist.

-- MDT

Labels: identity theft, Lifelock, scam

Mortgage fraud is the new black.

-- MDT

Labels: Argent Mortgage, Constance Golder, Orson Benn, scam, sub-prime mortgage

Starting with this piece of work, Charles Head. Two separate indictments were filed based on a joint FBI / IRS investigation into Head and his numerous cohorts. They allegedly obtain false titles for more than 100 homes netting them millions in illicit loans, all the while promising homeowners that they could rescue their houses from foreclosure.

Nice guys....really.

In addition to the aforementioned Mr. Head, here are a few of the other folks involved in the scheme, as reported by My58 News:

• Jeremy Michael Head, 30, of Huntington Beach
• Elham Assadi, aka Elham Assadi Jouzani, aka Ely Assadi, 30, of Irvine
• Leonard Bernot, 51, of Laguna Hills
• Akemi Bottari, 28, of Los Angeles
• Joshua Coffman, 29, of North Hollywood
• John Corcoran, aka Jack Corcoran, 52, of Anaheim
• Sarah Mattson, 27, of Phoenix, Ariz.
• Domonic McCarns, 33, of Brea
• Anh Nguyen, 36, of Los Angeles
• Omar Sandoval, 32, of Rancho Cucamonga
• Xochitl Sandoval, 29, of Rancho Cucamonga
• Eduardo Vanegas, 28, of Phoenix
• Andrew Vu, 39, of Santa Ana
• Justin Wiley, 28, of Irvine
• Kou Yang, 32, of Corona
• Keith Brotemarkle, 42, of Johnstown, Pa.
• Benjamin Budoff, 41, of Colorado Springs, Colo
• Lisa Vang, 24, of Westminster

You can get more info on the scam and this charming team of con artists via HousingWire. See also this LA Times piece. And you certainly expect to see more of these cases coming down the pike, given the sub-prime mess. Desperate people and con men go together like PB & J.

-- MDT

Labels: Charles Head, scam, sub-prime mortgage