360 Privacy has a mission to protect the digital identity, security, and reputation of high-profile executives, athletes, celebrities, and high-net-worth families. Pulse 2.0 interviewed 360 Privacy Executive Privacy and Security Advisor Tom Aldrich to learn more about the company.
Background Of 360 Privacy
Pulse 2.0 (Amit): Tell me about 360 Privacy.
360 Privacy (Tom): 360 Privacy was founded in 2019 and is focused on reducing the overall digital footprint of our customer base. We do that through a handful of measures. First, we identify and help remove our customers’ personally identifiable information (PII) from search, data broker, and data aggregator websites. We combine that with deep and dark web monitoring to determine if there is compromised information or credentials in harder-to-reach places of the internet. We also focus on education because everyone is susceptible to some type of phishing attack or compromise.
Company’s Approach To Executive Protection
Pulse 2.0 (Amit): How has your background and that of the other executives shaped the company’s approach to executive protection?
360 Privacy (Tom): It’s one of the most important variables when it comes to identifying a service to help solve problems like these. Our thesis has been to hire the right people, and particularly people with backgrounds in the security, defense, intelligence, or executive protection communities. These people have been targeted before, have targeted other people, and they understand the ramifications of doing either one of those poorly. The consequences can be catastrophic. Our team has a vast amount of experience implementing procedures and practices to help people become more private, but they’ve also been on the receiving end of what happens when those things don’t work according to plan.
Core Product
Pulse 2.0 (Amit): What is the company’s core product?
360 Privacy (Tom): 360 Delete quickly removes our customers’ PII from hundreds of websites. But the most important aspect of the product is that each day we scan for the eventual repopulation of a full profile or partial pieces of data to ensure that we are pulling the information down as quickly as it comes up. Our analogy is that if you mow your lawn on a Monday and you don’t mow it again for another month, it is going to look like the Amazon. It’s no different with the data broker and data economy space; you have to be diligent in removing personal data.
Differentiation From The Competition
Pulse 2.0 (Amit): What differentiates 360 Privacy from its competitors?
360 Privacy (Tom): First, we hire people who have dedicated backgrounds in privacy, security, intelligence, and understanding the attack cycle. Second, 360 Delete, our flagship product. We cover more website and visibility components to people’s information than any of our competitors. We do the sweeps for the repopulation of data on a daily basis. Third, is data residency. None of our employees are located outside of North America, and all of our employees who need to remove data from various sites are located at our headquarters in Tennessee.
Finally, we provide white-glove support. Our customers have our mobile numbers and multiple ways to contact us. When something goes wrong, they can quickly get in touch. They get an expert who can identify the issue and walk them through the process. I received a call from a customer last night who had left his phone on a plane and wanted help walking through what he should do in the interim between that moment and when or if the phone is returned to him.
Significant Milestones
Pulse 2.0 (Amit): What have been some of the company’s most significant milestones?
360 Privacy (Tom): The company got its start working with ultra-high net worth individuals, entertainers, and athletes. When we started to see a lot of traction in the corporate security space, it was an eye-opening moment. We help protect some of the world’s most successful people who lead companies that provide products to all of us on a daily basis. That has been a special part of the company’s growth.
Second, we’ve gone from less than 20 employees to over 80. And these are some of the most talented, intelligent, and experienced people I’ve ever worked with. If you hire good people, they run in circles with other good people and we’ve found that to be true. All of our employees come with a wealth of experience and feel our mission personally.
Our recent growth funding with FTV Capital has also been a pivotal part of our company’s growth. The investment will enable us to expand our engineering and revenue teams, accelerate technology and product innovation, and further enhance our ability to deliver best-in-class customer service to safeguard organizations and their executives.
Customer Success Stories
Pulse 2.0 (Amit): Can you share any customer success stories?
360 Privacy (Tom): I can share a few anonymous stories. In 2022, there was a famous activist group that had doxed the names and personal information of a handful of executives and executive teams throughout the world. We got a phone call from a partner who mentioned that one of our customers was on the list. Within 60 minutes, we got the list, which was out on the dark web. The satisfying part for us was that our customer was not on the list. Because the information on our customer was actually not within the source where the Hacktivist group had gone to retrieve the information, they weren’t able to find it and so they found someone with the same name. That gave credence to the importance of what we’re doing, and it spoke to how these databases are actually being used. They’re not just for background checks or trying to find old classmates or neighbors. A big part of this is moving towards the doxing space.
Another quick story is about a customer who reached out about a security incident at his home that involved some technology that had been installed. Both the individual and his spouse were spooked because they had let a company and an individual into their home, and that trust had been eroded. We put them in touch with the local intelligence agency for help in walking through any required legal steps. We also helped them contact a company that replaced the technology so they didn’t need to worry about future intrusions of privacy.
These events don’t happen between 9 and 5, Monday through Friday. They happen after hours, on weekends, and on holidays. That’s one differentiation of our team. We put ourselves in our customers’ shoes and we solve problems whenever they occur. That’s why our customers value the service and experience that we bring.
Pulse 2.0 (Amit): What recommendations do you have for executives to limit their exposure?
360 Privacy (Tom): One of the first things someone can do is to Google their name, city, and state, and home address such as “John Smith, Phoenix, Arizona home address.” All of the data broker sites will surface to the top of the Google search engine, and there’s a Google tool you can use to remove those search results.
Second, we always recommend doing a digital assessment, not only for the individual, but a spouse, significant other, and any children. Identify the vulnerabilities, beyond PII, to include compromised passwords, credit cards, and social security numbers.
Our third recommendation is to freeze your credit. It provides an additional barrier so that someone can’t establish a new line of credit in your name.
Fourth, there are a lot of free resources out there. We have an entire cybersecurity playbook that we offer to anyone who comes to our website. There a lot of good tips and best practices on hardening your personal devices.
