All of this baby naming hoop-de-doo is driving me insane!  If I base my baby's name on its domain name availability please slap some sense into me.  Supposedly, it's a big trend among new parents to establish their kids' internet identities before they can even walk, talk and poop in the potty.  Link to Wired article.

Previously:
Google Baby, Metallica, 4real, Urhines Kendall Icy Eight Special K

For those of you who are unfamiliar, Second Life is a virtual world where you can create an avatar, own virtual land, exchange virtual currency, and build all sorts of virtual things.  Different from a typical multi-user role playing game, in Second Life you have no guiding objective -- it's less a game than it is an environment for creating whatever pleases you.

Because your avatar doesn't need to eat, you don't really have any basic needs that need to be fulfilled.  Instead, time in SL is spent exploring, chatting with other avatars, and exchanging land and various in-world creations that people -- yourself or others -- have made.

I spent the evening looking at the SL presence for as many major brands as I could find.  I'm sure I've missed a few, but this is a fairly good representation of what real world advertisers are doing in the virtual world space.  From a creative standpoint, it's not hard to see why advertisers are so interested in exploring Second Life's possibilities.  There aren't a lot of creative or physical limitations inherent in the environment, so it's a unique opportunity to present a brand in an entirely new context.

So, without further ado, here is the massive list of real world brands that are currently participating in the virtual world of Second Life.  Enjoy.

We've heard about the Swedish couple that wanted to name their newborn daughter "Metallica".  If you think that's crazy, there is a New Zealand couple wanting to name their new son "4real".

Pat and Sheena Wheaton said they decided to name their new baby "4real" shortly after having an ultrasound and being struck by the reality of his impending arrival.

But when the parents filed the name with New Zealand's Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, they were told names beginning with a number were against the rules.

The government office has opened negotiations with the parents about the name under a policy that says all unusual names must be given case-by-case consideration.

"The name has not at this stage been rejected," Registrar-General Brian Clarke said in a statement Thursday. "We are currently in discussions with the parents ... to clarify the situation."

Shoot!  If I could have numerals in my name, I'd change my name to "xoxoSweetAngel14xoxo". 

Update:  I've decided that "Metallica" and "4real" are decent names compared to this baby name "Urhines Kendall Icy Eight Special K".  Urhines is pronounced "Your Highness" and Special K refers to Ketamine which is a recreational drug.  Way to go mom and dad!

For $14, you could easily become a whole new person -- or at least have their credit card number. 

Identity thieves are offering a person’s credit-card number, date of birth and other sensitive information for as little as US$14 over the Internet, said a new report on online threats released Monday.

The data is sold on so-called “underground economy servers,” used by criminal organizations to hawk information they’ve captured through hacking, Symantec said in its Internet Security Threat Report, which tracked online trends from June to December 2006. The information can then be used for identity scams such as opening a bank account in a false name.

“U.S.-based credit cards with a card verification number were available for between US$1 to $6, while an identity — including a U.S. bank account, credit card, date of birth and government-issued identification number — was available for between $14 to $18,” the report said.

There is nothing more scary than having your personal identification or credit cards lost or stolen.  Hopefully you will never need to use this information, but here are 8 things you must do if your identity is stolen. 

One tip that I would add at the top of this list is to be proactive and track your credit card expenses weekly.  Don't wait for a phone call from your creditor.  We are able to track our expenses through an online service so when we had our credit card number stolen we noticed immediately that fradulent expenses were made and were able to act quickly. 

Identity thieves don't need to physically steal your wallet or purse to steal your identify so track your expenses regularly so fradulent charges don't unknowingly pass you by.

[via digg]

Previously:
Credit for the College Student, How secure is a credit card?