She used the same password across sites, didn’t use multi-factor authentication or transaction alerts, used easy-to-guess password reset questions, etc. Brian laughed when Chris shared the episode - saying that he was spending a lot of time with his family helping them with online identity protection and safety.
There had to be a better way to help people be safer! Off they went to do some research, learning that typical consumers suffer fraud at a rate 124% higher than security experts, because of specific online behaviors. Testing engagement techniques used by Fitbit, Snapchat and other consumer apps, they found that you can successfully motivate and empower people to take action to prevent fraud.
And Covered was born!
Covered Security was started by two successful security entrepreneurs, Chris Zannetos and Brian Milas.
One night, after selling the Identity & Access Management software company they had co-founded, Chris found himself driving to his mother’s house after a frantic call from her about hackers stealing her money. When he arrived, he had her log into her accounts and the good news was that her money was all there. The bad news? He saw that she was using none of the advice he had given her!
Covered’s mission is simple: help people take actions that will prevent them from having to deal with the time, cost, and hassle of becoming a victim of fraud or online scams.
A majority of the $80b+ in fraud and identity theft is either driven by, or can be prevented by, actions that the individual takes – the sort of actions that Chris’ mother didn’t take. We know that people view security as complex, confusing and boring - and typically won’t think about security until after a problem.
So, we make security understandable and personalized, simplify it and guide people so it’s super easy to take action, and give people rewards for taking action before they have an issue. And we can make it free for consumers by delivering value to financial institutions – which bear the brunt of fraud and scam costs – while still protecting the privacy of the people we started Covered to serve. People like our parents, brothers, and sisters.
