The Top Identity Theft Protection Services

We Review the Top  Identity Theft Protection Options

Identity theft has grown to be a very serious problem. Once someone has access to your identity and then compromises your private information, it can take time and money to get your reputation back into good standing, depending on the severity of the information that was stolen from you and what was done with it.

When you check your credit score and notice that there is a bill on there for a service you have never heard of or received, then it is already too late, and someone has already stolen your information. Now it is time to go through the process of fighting with the bill collectors and the credit service where the bill originated from. You may even have to go to court to solve the problem.

In some cases, authorities are finding that children have had their names and social security numbers stolen, sometimes by a trusted adult in their lives, or sometimes by a stranger. Because children are not routinely applying for credit or using their social security numbers more than a few times a year, it is sometimes easier for thieves to manipulate a child’s credit than to manipulate credit that belongs to a financially active adult. This makes the situation even harder to deal with and rectify.

Identity Theft Protection Is Critial in This Day and Age

The simple fact is that ID theft protection is crucial in this modern age of computers and electronic money. There is no need to go through all of trouble and frustration that can go along with ID theft, when there are services available that can provide you with protection, and ensure that this cannot happen to you.

There are many companies that can offer you Identity Theft Protection, and it can be overwhelming to find the right one. You may have already been a victim of identity theft that you do not even known about yet.

Our Top Four Picks

The top four available services are LifeLock, ProtectMyID, IDENTITY GUARD, and IdentityTruth. You can evaluate them by comparing their offerings in six different categories including: reputation, security, recovery assistance, additional features, help and support, and information protected.

Each item will be discussed as it pertains to the differences between the three companies. By taking a brief look at each one, you can easily find the best one to suit your needs.

LifeLock

This is one of the fastest growing companies out there. It has also been nominated for many American Awards. LifeLock is now the leading company in identity theft protection because it offers great service to all consumers and is ranked excellently in all categories. The personal information LifeLock will protect includes your name, social security number, phone number, credit card information, address, e-mail, public records, drivers license, bank account information, loan or lease information, and your criminal records. If any of these items fall into the wrong hands, it can create a very unpleasant time for you.

So what else does LifeLock have for you? They do not have fraud alerts; however they do have a fraud monitoring service that has agents working around the clock to ensure that your information is safe.

The Erecon scans the black market sites for sensitive information such as your name, social security number and address; to see if they are being used, bought or sold. If you are presented with an identity problem they have a one million dollar service guarantee that is required to assist you in restoring your identity. In these cases, LifeLock will assign to you a recovery specialist who will do what it takes to get your identity back to normal.

LifeLock protects your child for twenty-five dollars a year till the age of fifteen. With this program, LifeLock checks their credit every quarter to ensure that there is no signs of a valid credit report. If one shows itself then a fraud alert will be placed on their credit and the companies will be informed that this is a minor child. Also, as an added feature to this, LifeLock will contact the Social Security Administration and request a copy of their work history. This ensures that there is no fraudulent activity taking place with their social security number.

There are extra features that you can receive with this company, such as family coverage, stolen wallet services and mail list removal. The ability to protect your family is not offered by many services so this will stand out to many people who understand the value and importance of such a service.

The wallet service will assist you in canceling and replacing the contents of your wallet. There is also the upgraded version of LifeLock that has other interesting features; it is called the Command Center. The Command Center will send you reports on public records, pay day loans, court records and sex offenders. With these extra services you will be able to monitor if a criminal is using your name to commit a crime or you address to throw police off his scent.

LifeLock has a free thirty day trial so that you can see if these features are what you are looking for or need, and see how they work. When you are ready to sign up for this service, you will be happy to know that it is only nine dollars a month. If you ever have a question about your service or how to use it effectively, they have several customer service options available to you, including phone and email contact.

Customer service is available to you twenty-four hours a day and seven days a week. In addition to this, the website has a very extensive FAQs section.

While being a consumer of LifeLock, you are also able to use the myLifeLock feature at any time online to answer any questions you might have, or solve any issues.

ProtectMyID

ProtectMyID is a credit monitoring system offered to everyday consumers from Experian (one of the three major reporting credit bureaus). This company offers a slightly different coverage at around the same rate as LifeLock.

ProtectMyID does not cover or protect your bank information, drivers license, loan or lease information, or your criminal records. The thirty day trial is not free, however it only costs you a dollar, and unlike others, when you sign up you do not automatically get your credit score. They offer this information to you as a member for a discounted price. The information coverage is basic, and sometimes that is all you need to stay protected. If you decide to continue with the services offered by ProtectMyID, it is an affordable $15.95 per month.

The security feature with ProtectMyID monitors all three of the credit reporting agencies. Along with that, they also search the black market internet sites for your sensitive information and ensure that it is not being bought, sold, or traded. If there is someone who has your identity and attempts to open a credit card or some other account in your name and it shows up on more than one of your credit reports you will receive an alert about it. If someone tries to change your address or forwards your mail somewhere else, you will receive an alert for this also.

Included in the additional services that they offer, is the stolen wallet service, mailing list removal, access to credit history reports and credit monitoring. You will receive alerts if there is anything on your credit that is not normal or does not seem to be an action of your own. Family coverage includes child coverage; since this is a very increasing threat in the modern world. The child coverage feature will protect the identity of your child while he or she is growing up.

When you have found that there is an identity problem on your record, ProtectMyID will start to fix it right away. They connect you to their Fraud Resolution Agents who work hard for you. Their main goal is to solve the issues that you are having quickly and easily. ProtectMyID has a one million dollar product guarantee that will replace lost wages, legal fees, stolen funding from your bank or credit cards, if their product has failed to protect you.

This service would be more beneficial to the consumer who is mainly in the market to protect and correct the information that is on their credit reports. You can also have access to support and help from ProtectMyID via phone, e-mail, and the frequently asked questions section on their site.

IDENTITY GUARD

IDENTITY GUARD protects basic information such as your name, social security number, phone number, credit card information, address, e-mail, and public records; they also offer insurance record and vehicle registration plate protection.

IDENTITY GUARD offers a thirty day trial and upon signing up for the trial you will receive all three of your credit scores. For full service after your trial period it will only be 17.99 per month.

The security features are always following you wherever you go. The company has a free internet security suit that comes with all of the protection plans that protects you while you are on the internet. The MOBILE LOCKBOX feature allows you to store all the precious information you may have; such as username and passwords, bank information, insurance policies and medical documents. IDENTITY GUARD scans black market internet sites that buy and sell your information, and alert you when there is a problem.

The lost wallet protection for this company not only assists you in canceling your credit cards, but gives you up to two thousand dollars of emergency cash into your account. They also have an ID Vault. The ID Vault is a little USB stick that protects you against the cyber criminals who use tools such as spyware to gain your information.

When it comes to the issues of stolen identity recovery; the Identity Theft Recovery Center will guide you through the whole process of reclaiming yourself. There is a one million dollar program that will pay for your lost wages, legal fees and loss of funds if it is found that IDENTITY GUARD has failed to protect you. An ID RISK ASSESMENT will be completed after the situation has been fixed to ensure that your identity will not be stolen again.

The upgraded service that is offered to users allows them to see their quarterly credit score along with an online credit analyzer. IDENTITY GUARD does not offer a family plan or special identity protection for children.

This company is great, however, for the high tech gadget users. It has many features that are available to you as the consumer to protect your identity. If you have any questions, they have a live hotline that you can call. Although it may not be a twenty-four hour hotline, they do offer longer service hours than most.

IdentityTruth

This company is relatively new to the market, as it was founded in 2006. Identitytruth has worked hard to gain the approval of the consumer market over the years. Not only does the company alert you of fraud, but they also watch out for out of the ordinary activity that may surface on your credit report.

Protection from this company covers all of the basics with your name, phone number, social security number, e-mail account, street address, bank account information, personal records, and your loan or lease information.

When you sign up for the free trial with IdentityTruth, the one thing that stands out is the fact that they do not require you to reveal your social security number. This is an optional thing only during the trial period. Once you decide to use the full paid version of the program then you will be required to submit your social security number. They do this so that you as the consumer can learn about the program and learn to be comfortable with them. If you find that you are comfortable with the services and choose to continue, the product will be 17.99 per month.

While IdentityTruth will look out for you while you are on the internet, they are also constantly scanning the black market web sites that buy and sell your personal information. All of the pesky pre approved credit card offers will soon stop when you sign up with this company. They send an alert to the credit bureaus and inform them that you no longer wish for these services. When this stops you are less likely to have your identity stolen because your information is no longer being scanned and distributed to all of the credit card companies out there.

Instead of only receiving your credit score, you are given your Identity Health Score. The Identity Health Score gives you a decent breakdown of where the issues are in your credit and the possibility of having your identity stolen. They then give you specific steps for you to follow to not only improve your score but to lessen the likelihood of being scammed.

You will receive notices via your e-mail on possible fraud activity. This will not only alert you of fraud that is already occurring but also to prevent the beginnings of identity theft against you. IdentityTruth also goes as far as informing you if your information is being passed from a business you deal with to another business. This information is given to you even if the business scam has not made it to the media. The fraud alert system is at your personal disposal. Whenever a situation arises that you may have an issue with, you can report it to them. They then send a fraud alert to all three of the reporting credit bureaus and when a company is attempting to open new line of credit, they will be required to contact you or find some means of verifying that it is you who is attempting to open the account.

Exceeding the expectations of not only their competitors, but also their consumers, by having a two million dollar recovery system that not only will assist you in recovering your wallet but also paying for expenses. If you wallet is stolen they will assist you in alerting and canceling your credit cards. If fraud was detected and you need to recover everything, this policy will pay for your missed work, legal fees and any money that is not recovered during the process.

At any time, as a member or as a potential customer with questions, you can call their toll free number, send them an e-mail, or read the frequently asked questions section on their website. While this may be the best company for your needs, remember that it is also owned by Experian (one of the three major reporting credit bureaus).

Which One is Right for You?

There are a number of identity theft protection services in the market today for consumers to choose from. The best suggestion is to look at all the information that is provided for you and make the best choice.

Finding the right company is not an easy choice to make. You have multiple criteria to look at including reputation, security, recovery assistance, additional features, help and support, and information protected.

Another thing that you should also look at are the credentials that a company carries. Just like in the field of medicine, credibility, and background are very important in this field. The companies covered here are all accredited by each of the three credit bureaus, ie. Experian, Trans Union and Equifax.

These companies/credit bureaus are the ones who compile all of your information and create your credit. With this information being very sensitive, you need the best protection available to you. It is important to guard your more sensitive information such as your social security number, bank information, personal records and address from potential thieves on the internet and in daily life, because you never know who is trustworthy enough to keep it safe. LifeLock, ProtectMyID, IDENTITY GUARD, and IdentityTrust are the leading products on the market to protect you and your family.