Compare Reviews for Identity Theft Protection
Identity theft protection companies help people monitor their financial accounts and personal information to ensure that their identity has not been stolen or misused. By using an identity theft protection company, consumers can spot abnormal activity with their credit cards, bank accounts, social security information and more to help repair and resolve issues regarding identity theft.
Top 8 Best Rated Identity Theft Protection Companies | ||
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With tiered pricing and service levels that always include $1 million in identity recovery services, LifeLock is invested in prevention. Its app offers real-time updates, keeping users informed about identity threats.
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Read 1154 Reviews
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TrustedID goes beyond identity protection by offering targeted prevention products. Using the company's services, consumers can search millions of public and private databases to determine their level of risk and vulnerability.
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Read 8 Reviews
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ProtectMyID is an Experian company, making it an industry leader in credit monitoring. As one of the three most used credit monitoring companies, this service works to seamlessly protect consumers from fraudulent purchases.
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Read 10 Reviews
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Identity Guard offers credit report updates and scores from all three credit bureaus. It also alerts subscribers when their social security numbers have been used and features helpful extras like identity theft insurance.
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Read Reviews
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IdentityForce has been a trusted name in identity protection for more than 35 years, offering services to individuals, businesses and government agencies. Its comprehensive policies include protection for children and parents.
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Offering live support and guaranteed resolution in the event of identity theft, ID Watchdog is an industry leader in fraud protection and prevention. This service allows consumers to catch identity theft before it is a problem.
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The AllClear ID Alert Network has been featured in publications including The New York Times for its excellent reputation. This service offers insurance against criminal activity and credit monitoring to prevent financial losses.
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ID Shield offers complete and unlimited identity theft services to protect businesses, families and individuals for a flat monthly payment. Customers receive notifications, monthly updates and restoration services, if necessary.
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Rob DouglasIdentity Theft Protection Contributing Editor
Rob Douglas is an information security consultant specializing in the investigation and prevention of identity theft and scams. Rob is one of the nation’s leading authorities on the use of social engineering, impersonation, fraud and pretext to steal personal information. For two decades, Rob has assisted the financial services sector, the telecommunications industry, the general business community, government and law enforcement agencies to better understand the scope and methodology of identity crimes through presentations, educational materials, auditing and consultation.
Cost
Identity theft protection services are available to customers both for free and for a fee.
- Free companies: Free identity theft protection companies monitor things like credit reports and financial activities for free.
- Paid companies: Most identity theft protection companies offer their services for a price. Customers pay a company to monitor things like their credit report, and in turn, the company also offers comprehensive monitoring and repair services.
- Mixed plan companies: There are some companies that offer a range of different identity theft protection plans, including both free and paid plans.
Monitoring services
A person's identity is composed of a range of factors, including credit use, financial history, medical history and more. Identity theft companies offer a range of monitoring services that watch over different aspects of a person's identity to ensure it hasn't been altered or stolen.
- Credit monitoring: Some identity theft protection companies monitor clients' credit reports and credit usage to ensure that their credit cards are not being used fraudulently.
- SSN monitoring: There are identity theft companies that monitor the usage of a person's social security number so that they are notified if anybody else attempts to use that number.
- Comprehensive companies: Many identity theft protection companies offer comprehensive monitoring for many aspects of a person's identity, including credit monitoring, SSN monitoring, financial monitoring, medical monitoring and more.
Resolution assistance
When a person's identity is stolen, they often need assistance fixing the damage that has been done, and some identity theft protection programs offer aid to those who need to resolve their situation.
- No repair assistance offered: Some identity theft companies simply help individuals monitor their credit and financial situation but do not offer aid in repairing the situation should an identity be stolen.
- Resolution services offered: Many identity theft protection companies both monitor a person's identity and offer assistance repairing and reclaiming that identity if it is stolen.
- Preventative services offered: For people who have had trouble with identity theft, many identity theft companies offer preventative services, like placing a fraud alert on their credit report, removing a person's name from any pre-screened credit card lists or removing their name from mailing lists to minimize the chance of identity problems.
Insurance offered
Identity theft protection companies often offer to insure a person's identity and provide them with reparations should their identity be stolen.
- Full identity theft insurance: Companies that offer full identity theft insurance will reimburse customers for the entire cost of repairing their identity.
- Lost wallet protection: Some identity theft protection companies offer lost wallet protection, which will cancel and replace stolen credit or debit cards and sometimes includes reimbursement for stolen cash.
- No insurance: Identity theft companies that offer no insurance provide services to customers, but they do not offer compensation for any difficulties with identity theft.
Reports offered
Identity theft protection companies can offer customers a range of reports so they can have firsthand knowledge of their financial situation and identity history.
- Individual bureau credit reports: Identity theft protection companies can offer customers credit reports from one specific credit bureau so they can see their credit score, individual credit accounts and credit usage over time.
- Comprehensive credit reports: If an identity theft protection company offers customers comprehensive credit reports, it can show them full reports from all three credit bureaus, in addition to a wide variety of financial information.
- No reports: Some identity theft companies will monitor a person's identity for identity theft, but they do not make reports available to customers.
Available plan types
There are many types of plans offered by individual identity theft protection companies, and customers have the option of choosing the plan that is best for them.
- Basic plans: Some identity theft protection companies only offer a straightforward, basic monitoring plan that can help protect a person's identity.
- Premium services: Some identity protection companies offer premium services for a price, and all customers who use the service must pay to work with the company.
- Multiple plans: Identity theft protection companies that offer multiple plans allow customers to choose the level of service and price that is best suited to their needs.
Credit monitoring companies
Credit monitoring companies simply monitor a person's credit report for irregularities. These companies are focused on ensuring that a person's credit and debit cards are not used fraudulently.
Identity theft prevention companies
Companies that are focused on identity theft prevention take steps to ensure that identity theft does not happen to customers. These companies are proactive, rather than simple monitoring services.
Identity theft repair companies
Customers who need help to repair identities that have been altered or stolen turn to identity theft repair companies. These companies specialize in helping people reclaim their identities and fixing problems that have been caused by the identity theft.
Full service identity theft companies
Full service identity theft companies offer customers a range of services, including monitoring, prevention and repair.
People who have had their identity stolen
People who have previously had their identity stolen can depend on identity theft protection companies for help. Companies can help them repair the damage and take steps to prevent it from happening again.
People who have had personal items or information stolen
People who have had items containing personal information stolen, such as a wallet, but have not yet found any fraudulent activity can seek an identity theft protection company's help to safeguard their identity against possible theft.
People with children who have social security numbers
Many parents don't realize that their children, who are issued social security numbers, are at risk of identity theft, and this theft often goes undetected because their social security numbers are not being monitored. Thus, families can often benefit from protection plans that will keep watch over all members of the family.
People who frequently use debit and credit cards
People who frequently use debit and credit cards are at a higher risk of identity theft than people who rarely use debit and credit cards. Identity theft protection programs can help safeguard these people against identity theft and repair the damage should their identity be stolen.
LifeLock is an identity theft protection company that is headquartered in Tempe, AZ. Founded in 2005, the company is considered one of the leading identity theft protection companies in the world.
- Best for People who have had their identity stolen, people who have had personal items or information stolen, people at risk of identity theft, people with children who have social security numbers and people who frequently use credit cards.
With nearly 20 years of experience, Identity Guard, a service offered by Intersections Inc., puts identity protection first. Identity theft is one of the fastest-growing crimes worldwide, so the company's dedication to protecting your personal information provides you with much-needed safeguards.
- Best for Credit card holders, checking account holders and consumers with good credit scores.
TrustedID is an identity theft protection company that is headquartered in Palo Alto, CA. The company specializes in monitoring and alerting customers if their identity or credit has been compromised.
- Best for People who have had personal items or information stolen, people with children who have social security numbers and people who frequently use credit cards.
Headquartered in Framingham, MA, IdentityForce is a provider of identity theft protection that was founded in 2006. The company is focused on reducing the damage of identity theft when it does occur.
- Best for People who have had their identity stolen, people who have had personal items or information stolen, people with children who have social security numbers and people who frequently use credit cards.
ProtectMyID is an identity theft company that has its corporate headquarters in Dublin, Ireland. The company belongs to Experian Interactive, and they provide detection and resolution services to customers in need.
- Best for People who have had personal items or information stolen, people with children who have social security numbers and people who frequently use credit cards.
ID Watchdog is an identity theft protection program that was founded in 2004. The company now provides monitoring, alert and repair services to individuals worried about identity theft.
- Best for People who have had personal items or information stolen, people who have had their identity stolen and people who frequently use credit cards.
AllClear ID is an identity theft protection company headquartered in Austin, TX. Originally known as Debix, the company now offers business and organization clients monitoring and resolution services for customers at risk of identity theft.
- Best for People who have had their identity stolen because they were a customer of a business or organization, which suffered a data breach that included the personal information of its customers.
ID Shield is an identity theft protection company that offers data monitoring, instant identity breach notifications and identity restoration services. The company uses its customers' personal or business information to track financial, employment, medical and criminal records to ensure there is no unauthorized activity occurring. It employs licensed private investigators to track this data, answer customers' questions and provide advice when necessary.
- Best for Individuals, families and businesses that are concerned about the security of their identity.
Information in this guide is general in nature and is intended for informational purposes only; it is not legal, health, investment or tax advice. ConsumerAffairs.com makes no representation as to the accuracy of the information provided and assumes no liability for any damages or loss arising from its use.