There are always two sides to a coin. If an innovation appears as a boon to our world, much time is not taken to manipulate it and use it otherwise. With the advent of the internet, our world has developed in terms of tech. Many companies have been founded in the IT sectors, economic growth has also increased, and communication has become easier. With the transmission of data, data storage, etc the risk of data leaking is of utmost importance. Because when a person’s data is all over the net, anyone can take advantage of it. Many companies and also government agencies provide cybersecurity. LifeLock is an American software company that provides services for preventing identity theft.
Identity theft is a category of cybercrime in which an individual tries to take financial advantage mostly through someone’s identity. Robert J. Maynard and Todd Davis founded the company in 2005 with more than 600 employees. The company’s headquarters are currently based in Arizona, United States.
Robert J. Maynard
Robert is a famous American businessman who has also co-founded Internet America, an internet service provider and several other companies.
Born in 1962, Robert served in the US Marine Corps as well as the US Reserve Army before attending college. He went to Northern Arizona University in 1985 and excelled in academics. He won many awards during this time and gained recognition. Robert founded Internet America in the late 1990s and it became a huge success. He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in the early 2000s.
Todd Davis
Todd went to Baylor University and received his bachelor’s degree in business in 1990. After completing his bachelor’s he worked for many start-ups as a part of their executive management team. In 1992, he joined Dell and he also received the Dell Vision Award. In 2002, Todd founded his own company, Marketing Champions and served as the CEO.
In 2005, Todd along with Robert co-founded LifeLock and Todd served as the CEO of the company till 2016. In 2016, he stepped down from the position and became the executive vice-chairman of the Board of Directors.
Apart from being a successful businessman, Todd is also a very good speaker and a philanthropist. In 2009, he received the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award and came in the list of one of the most admired CEO in 2009.
The Beginning
LifeLock works to provide services like identity authentication monitor the credit applications of the customers and protect the accounts from identity theft. The company also monitors real-time data from account openings and sends notifications or alerts in case of dual checking. When the duo founded the company they only had a seed funding of $2 million.
Investors
In the next year, the company received a funding of $5 million from Bessemer Ventures. And, additional $6 million from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Buyers in 2007. The company, within two years of its establishment, landed some impressive investors. Apart from these investors, others include River Street Management, Goldman Sachs Group, etc.
After receiving $25 million in Series C funding, the company raised another $40 million in Series D funding. In 2012, the company raised another $100 million from existing investors.
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Upside Down
Robert left the company in 2007 after he was the victim of identity theft. It is a point of huge controversy when the founder of a cyber protection company falls prey to such crimes. After this incident, maybe to save the face loss of the company, Todd made his social security number public. But, after this move, his banking system was attacked more than thirteen times.
Acquisitions and Partnerships
In December 2008, LifeLock signed an agreement with TransUnion for sending alert messages to customers in case of odd activity. LifeLock acquired ID Analytics in 2012. The company also went public in 2012 offering its initial IPO at $175 million. This year, Hilary Schneider joined LifeLock as its President.
In the next few years, LifeLock acquired Lemon Wallet for $42.6 million and Symantec for $2.3 billion.
In 2015, the company was charged $100 million as a fine for failing to secure its customer’s privacy. There have been many controversies after Robert resigned from the company. But, the company also received many awards such as Grand Steve Award for two consecutive years (2012 & 2013). LifeLock also acquired the eighth position in the list of Inc magazine in 2010.
Annasha Dey is an NIT student, who apart from studying engineering is also a content writer. She has a great interest in photography, writing, reading novels, and travelling as well. She is a foodie who loves socializing and hanging out with her friends. She is also a trained Kathak dancer and a big fashion enthusiast. Dey also loves watching TV series, which includes F.R.I.E.N.D.S. and Big Bang Theory. To be a better writer she prefers to read more