Identity Theft Protection
Choosing the Best Identity Theft Protection Service:
Identity theft protection services vary in what services and features they have to offer. A few identity theft services provide credit monitoring, some offer internet security software, while others offer a wealth of other id protection features. Read our reviews to see which service is right for you.
| Service | Trusted ID | ProtectMyID | Lifelock | Identity Guard | ID Watchdog |
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| Summary | Top Family Plan | Top Personal Plan | Most Popular | Most Features | Good Security |
| Blackmarket Scanning |
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Credit Monitoring |
Not Included |
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Not Included |
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Not Included |
| Database Monitoring |
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| Fraud Detection |
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| Our Analysis |
Very popular and cheapest family plan. Offers competitive protection tools and comprehensive identity theft monitoring.
Full Review |
Cheapest credit monitoring service and excellent individual plan. Run by Experian, one of the three credit bureaus.
Full Review |
Most popular identity theft service. Offers a wide range of identity theft protection and fraud detection tools and services.
Full Review |
Most features, from internet security software to credit card fraud protection. Offers credit monitoring services; more expensive.
Full Review |
Offers regular identity theft monitoring, fast detection services, and full recovery if identity theft happens to you.
Full Review |
| Trial (30 Days) |
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| Price / Month | $7.01 | $9.95 | $9.00 | $17.99 | $12.00 |
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What is Identity Theft Protection?
These days consumer identities are valuable assets, and can tell you a lot about the individual person from what credit they are allowed to apply for through to what taxes they pay and whether or not they have had any criminal convictions. It is very important to protect your own identity, as without it you cannot apply for mortgages, new bank accounts, driving licenses and even get a job, and just think how much damage a thief could do to your good name if they were to steal any key details about your identity and misuse them to carry out serious crimes such as fraud. Identity Theft Protection services recognize how important and valuable your data is, and can help you to prevent thieves and fraudsters from stealing this information and misusing it, and they can also provide very useful specialist resolution services that can help you to resolve your case should you unfortunately become a victim of this crime.
Identity Theft Protection Main Features
Identity theft protection services are very affordable, starting from as little as $4.99 per month and can provide you with a number of very effective ways to help prevent thieves and fraudsters from taking advantage of any stolen personal information:
• Credit Report Monitoring – your consumer credit report is a vital resource when it comes to identity theft prevention, as this is one of the first places you will be able to spot if any thieves or fraudsters are attempting to use your personal details to apply fraudulently for credit products such as new bank accounts, loans, service agreements, cell phone contracts and credit cards. Identity Theft Protection services typically provide credit report monitoring services that will alert you immediately if any changes take place on your report, and will also provide you with a free annual copy of your credit reports from one or all of the main credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion).
• Credit Fraud Flags – Identity Theft Protection services can help you to arrange credit fraud flags if you suspect you may have become the victim of identity theft, and this will mean that every time an application for a credit account is made in your name, the provider will have to contact you personally to authorize the account before the application can be processed. This will also apply to any accounts you wish to set up yourself, which can delay applications for loans and mortgages, but you can always suspend your fraud flags temporary to allow specific applications to go through quickly.
• Credit Freeze – If you know you have become the victim of identity theft then it is a good idea to take advantage of the credit freeze feature offered by many Identity Theft Protection services. This will place a complete block on your credit report, so not only can no applications for new credit be processed at all, by also lenders or creditors will not be able request details of your credit report, restricting access to your credit history and personal details.
• Computer Security – you may not realize just how much personal information is contained on your computer, especially if you bank or shop online, so it is important that you have adequate security in place to protect your identity from any hackers or fraudster attempting to gain access to your personal information through your Internet connection. Many Identity Theft Protection services provide security software suites that can protect your computer against potentially harmful keyloggers, trojans, viruses and other malware, and also against direct attack from online intruders.
• Electronic Vaults – it can be difficult remembering all of your PIN numbers and log in passwords, but it can be a security risk to write these down on paper, as if they were to be stolen then fraudsters could use them to easily access your online bank, shopping and email accounts for fraudulent purpose, and could also use your PIN numbers and any credit card information to steal money directly from your accounts. Electronic vaults are provided by some Identity Theft Protection services and these are secure, encrypted password only accounts where you can store all of your sensitive credit card numbers, bank account details, PIN numbers and online log in information. This can be easily accessed through any web-enabled device (computers, laptops PDAs and cell phones) so that you can get the information when you need it, even if you are on the move.
Identity Theft Protection Insurance
One of the key benefits of identity theft protection services is that as well as helping to prevent this kind of crime from happening in the first place, they also provide a lot of support for any members that do become victims of identity thieves. Identity theft insurance is a key component of Identity Theft Protection services and this can provide the victim with a support from experienced identity theft resolution specialists, and also cover for some of the fees, costs and expenses that can be incurred as part of resolving an identity theft case (typically up to $1 million cover offered). Identity theft can be a difficult crime to track and resolve and so the additional support of insurance and resolution advice can be of great benefit to an individual who has become a victim of identity theft fraud.
How Can I Prevent Identity Theft?
There is no way of protecting yourself 100% against identity theft, so you can reduce the risks of becoming a victim of this type of crime by signing up to one of the Identity Theft Protection services, and also by taking some of these simple precautions with your personal information:
• Never share personal data such as PIN numbers, bank account details or credit card numbers with anyone, even those you are close to as you just cannot guarantee this information will not be misused. Also if it is found out that you have shared this information then you may not be entitled to reimbursement from your provider should your details be misused for fraudulent purposes. If you do need to provide financial information to an organization or company online in order to pay for goods or services, then make sure the website has a secure payment portal with SSL encryption, and never email your payment details as this is an unsecured method of data transfer.
• Personal Documents – key identity documents such as passports, drivers licenses, Social Security cards and birth certificates should all be kept secure in a locked safe, and you should never carry them around with you unless absolutely necessary.
• Make sure you shred documents carefully before throwing them away, as thieves commonly sort through household rubbish to try and access personal details about others, so anything with your name and address should be shredded, as well as bank statements, utility bills, phone statements, pay slips and tax returns.