FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -------------------------- Of interest to editors and journalists covering: Banking, Business/Finance, Privacy, Legal/Law, Internet, General Ed. Desperate for Privacy, Americans Are Hiding Their Identities and More IFG America Set to Help Average Americans Hide Their Financial Foot Prints LOS ANGELES, CALIF. - (Send2Press Newswire) - October 30, 2003 -- Over 1 million users have signed up to cloak their identities, according to the leading provider of anonymous online surfing services. Tapping into increasing offline and online privacy concerns, IFG America (www.ifgamerica.com) announced the launch of Global Shield, a program that allows individuals to hide their financial footprints and place more of their sensitive personal information out of sight and out of reach. Global Shield relies on an old strategy traditionally used by the rich to hide their financial dealings. These proven privacy tactics have been repackaged for a new and growing market of privacy-starved, average Americans. IFG America's Global Shield protects individual privacy by setting up a simple, very low cost, "personal holding company," along with a bank account and a credit card in a foreign jurisdiction, that is legally bound not to share personal information. The solution seems less radical when viewed in the context of the increasing and so far intractable privacy threat from the mass aggregation of and trafficking of sensitive personal information by banks and insurance companies. What individuals spend their money on, what their credit cards are used for, how much they spend, when and how frequently, is all being tracked and legally traded between banks and thousand of "affiliate" companies. Add to the mix the epidemic rise in identity theft, financial scams; and the increasing availability of sensitive personal information to virtually anyone who wants to access it, and the need for average Americans to take aggressive steps to defend their privacy becomes clear. "I was shocked to discover that I can buy the social security numbers of Attorney General John Ashcroft, CIA Director George Tenet, and just about every other cabinet member, online for just $26.00," says Dan Mac Mullin, Managing Director of IFG America. "Now that sensitive, personal information about everyone can be easily accessed by our neighbors, our employers, our co-workers, our customers, our clients, identity thieves, corporate marketers, competitors, scam artists, your estranged spouse, financial predators and opportunists from all around the globe, our privacy is more threatened now than ever before." "Because this threat is increasing, we all must take action to ensure that our personal information does not end up in the wrong hands," says Mac Mullin. Through the Global Shield set-up, subscribers can begin to gain control of their privacy by controlling the flow of sensitive, personal information that is routinely collected and exchanged in "financial information supermarkets" by banks, insurers and information warehouses. By controlling the flow of their sensitive financial information, individuals make their "financial DNA" much less accessible to information predators, marketers, identity thieves, scam artists and nosey neighbors. Though the privacy protection mechanism used by IFG America's Global Shield is not new, the marketing model behind it is very different from established conventions. "These systems have been used by the rich for years, but until now, there has been little need for them among average Americans and the cost made them prohibitive anyway. IFG America has found a way to provide the same world-class privacy protection that has historically cost tens of thousands of dollars for just $299 down and $49.97 a month." "Now a compelling case can be made for every American to proactively take steps to protect their privacy using this system," says Mac Mullin. IFG America is the marketing arm of IFG Financial Services, based in Nevis, West Indies. IFG has been providing privacy and asset protection services since 1997 and is one of the leading service providers in the nation. IFG America is the first company to recognize this new need for an old solution; the first to recognize this huge under-served market and the first to devise a mass-market pricing model, making the solution affordable to everyone. For more information about IFG America's Global Shield Privacy Protection Program, go to http://www.ifgamerica.com or call 869-469-7970 / Media Contact: Carol English Of IFG America +1-869-469-7970 info@ifgamerica.com / # # # [ source of news = IFG America ] ref: http://www.send2press.com/2archive/2003/pr_03_1030-ifgamerica.txt --------------------------------------------------------------------------- *Important Note: to reach the organization releasing this news, please contact: info@ifgamerica.com If used for publication, please send specimen copy. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- s2pPRN/N/7c/ CA / LOS ANGELES, CA This release was issued on behalf of the above organization by Send2Press(TM), a unit of Neotrope¨. http://www.Send2Press.com .