Best Identity Theft Protection Services: Safeguarding Your Information
Being a victim of identity theft can be a major headache, causing significant stress and financial loss if not caught early. Identity theft protection services provide a crucial layer of defense by monitoring your personal information and alerting you to potential threats. They also often provide assistance in restoring your identity and may include insurance to help cover related expenses. CNBC Select has reviewed the top identity theft protection services to help you choose the best option for your needs.
Here’s a look at some top-rated services:
- Best for protecting your family: Aura
- Best for dark web scanning: IdentityForce®
- Best for credit and identity protection in one: PrivacyGuard®
- Best for credit monitoring: Experian IdentityWorks℠
- Best for identity theft insurance: Identity Guard
- Best for computer and device protection: LifeLock™
Diving Deeper into the Top Providers
Aura
Cost:
- Individual plan: $9 per month (billed annually) or $12 monthly
- Couples plan: $17 per month (billed annually) or $20 monthly
- Family plan: $25 per month (billed annually) or $30 monthly
Standout Features:
- Protects against identity theft, financial fraud, spam calls, online theft, scam websites, viruses, and malware.
- Offers VPN, 3-credit bureau monitoring, password manager, and instant credit lock.
Pros:
- Family plan available (up to five adults and unlimited kids).
- 14-day free trial.
- Discounts for annual plans and combo plans for couples and families.
Cons:
- Doesn’t monitor social media accounts.
- Annual plans can only be cancelled in the first 60 days.
Who’s this for?
Aura is a great choice for couples and families, including features like family alert sharing, parental controls, and child identity protection.
Standout benefits:
Aura stands out for its white-glove fraud resolution team, email alias generation to hide your address, automated child sex offender geo-alerts, three-bureau credit monitoring, and monthly VantageScore access.
IdentityForce®
Cost:
- UltraSecure Individual: $19.90 per month or $199.90 per year
- UltraSecure+Credit Individual: $34.90 per month or $349.90 per year
- UltraSecure Family: $24.90 per month or $249.90 per year
- UltraSecure+Credit Family: $39.90 per month or $399.90 per year
Credit Bureaus Monitored: 3-bureau credit monitoring with alerts and reports (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion®) for UltraSecure+Credit Individual and UltraSecure+Credit Family plans.
Credit Scoring Model Used: VantageScore® 3.0 (with UltraSecure+Credit Individual and UltraSecure+Credit Family plans).
Dark Web Scan: Yes, with all plans.
Identity Theft Insurance: Yes, at least $1 million with all plans.
Pros:
- 3-bureau credit monitoring, alerts, and reports.
- Free VantageScore® 3.0.
- Dark web scanning.
- Minimum $1 million identity theft insurance coverage.
- Family plans are available.
Cons:
- Plans starting at $20-$40+ per month.
- Doesn’t look at FICO® Score.
Who’s this for?
IdentityForce is great for its dark web scanning and $1 million in identity theft insurance coverage, available with all plans. All plans include 3-bureau credit monitoring, alerts and reports, as well as access to users’ VantageScore® 3.0.
PrivacyGuard®
Cost: $9.99 to $24.99 per month
Identity Theft Insurance: Up to $1 million for Identity Protection and Total Protection plans; None for Credit Protection plan
Credit Monitoring: Total Protection and Credit Protection plans monitor your Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion credit reports; Identity Protection plan offers no credit monitoring.
Mobile App: Yes
Family Plan: No
Pros:
- Allows you to choose the plan you desire: Credit Protection, Identity Protection, or Total Protection.
- New users can try any plan for $1 for the first 14 days.
Cons:
- No family plan.
- No identity theft insurance with Credit Protection plan.
- Identity Protection plan doesn’t offer triple-bureau credit monitoring.
Who’s this for?
PrivacyGuard is ideal for those looking for bundled credit and identity protection. It offers separate plans for just identity or credit protection, as well as a plan for both combined with an extensive list of features:
- Free VantageScore
- 3-bureau credit monitoring, alerts, and reports.
- Dark web scanning, public records, and bank account monitoring
- $1 million identity theft insurance
Standout benefits:
PrivacyGuard offers unique features like a dedicated identity fraud resolution agent, a financial calculator suite, neighborhood reports, emergency travel assistance, and medical records reimbursement.
Experian IdentityWorks℠
Cost:
- Basic: Free
- Premium: 7-day trial; then $24.99 per month
- Family: 7-day trial; then $34.99 per month
Credit Bureaus Monitored:
- Basic plan: 1-bureau credit monitoring, alerts, reports (Experian).
- Premium and Family plans: 3-bureau credit monitoring, alerts, reports (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion®).
Credit Scoring Model Used: FICO® Score 8 (with all plans).
Dark Web Scan: Yes, with all plans.
Identity Theft Insurance: Yes, up to $1 million with all plans.
Pros:
- Free version and free trials.
- 3-bureau credit monitoring, alerts, and reports with Premium and Family plans.
- Free FICO® Score 8.
- Dark web scanning.
- Up to $1 million identity theft insurance coverage.
Cons:
- Pay for more advanced features, starting at about $25 per month.
Who’s this for?
Experian IdentityWorks is best for those planning to apply for a loan soon. The service offers all users access to their FICO® Score 8, which is the credit score used by most lenders.
Standout benefits:
Experian IdentityWorks has a free version as well as free trials for paid plans. All plans include dark web scanning and up to $1 million identity theft insurance coverage.
Identity Guard
Cost: $6.67 to $29.99 per month
Identity theft insurance: Up to $1 million in insurance for eligible losses from identity theft.
Credit Monitoring: The Total and Ultra plans monitor your Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion credit reports; the Value plan doesn’t offer credit monitoring.
Mobile app: Yes
Family plan: Yes
Pros:
- Option to choose from three plans: Value, Total, and Ultra
- All plans provide identity theft insurance, up to $1 million
- Variety of privacy tools which help reduce telemarketing calls, junk mail, and more (included free with annual plans)
Cons:
- No credit monitoring with the Value plan
Who’s this for?
Identity Guard is a great choice for those seeking identity theft insurance, as all plans include $1 million in identity theft insurance. Some plans also get 3-bureau credit monitoring and monthly credit scores.
Standout benefits:
Identity Guard excels in overall identity theft protection. This is because of included features such as:
- Data breach notifications.
- Monitoring on the dark web, high-risk transactions
- Bank accounts
- Social media
- And more
LifeLock™
Cost: $8.29 to $34.99 per month
Identity Theft Insurance: Up to $1 million for lawyers and experts; $25,000-$1 million each for stolen funds reimbursement; and personal expense compensation.
Credit Monitoring: The Ultimate Plus plan monitors your Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion credit reports; The Standard and Advantage plans monitor Equifax or TransUnion.
Mobile App: Yes
Family Plan: Yes
Pros:
- Choose between Standard, Advantage, and Ultimate Plus plans.
- All plans provide identity theft insurance.
- Norton 360 software is integrated into some plans, offering protection against viruses, spyware, malware, and other online threats for up to 5 PCs, Macs, and Android devices.
Cons:
- Less identity theft insurance coverage with a Standard plan.
- Standard plan lacks some alerts.
- Standard and Advantage plans only monitor one credit bureau.
Who’s this for?
LifeLock offers the largest insurance protection among this list with up to $3 million coverage per adult. It can protect you across various devices, including PCs, Macs, tablets and phones.
Standout benefits:
LifeLock offers advanced features such as phone takeover monitoring, “buy now, pay later” alerts, 401(k) and investment account activity alerts, social media monitoring, and more.
What to Look For in an Identity Theft Protection Service
When choosing an identity theft protection service, consider the following key features:
- Cost: The monthly fee for services can vary significantly. Consider your budget and what coverage you need.
- Identity Theft Insurance: Check the policy’s coverage amount for expenses like legal fees, stolen funds, and lost wages.
- Credit Monitoring: Triple-bureau credit monitoring is preferable, providing a comprehensive view of your credit reports.
- Dark Web Scanning: Critical for detecting if your information has been compromised and is for sale on the dark web.
- Family Plans: These can provide cost-effective protection for multiple family members.
- Mobile App: A mobile app allows you to access alerts and monitor your accounts on the go.
Identity Theft Protection vs. Credit Monitoring
It’s important to understand the difference between identity theft protection and credit monitoring, these two types of service are similar but have different functions.
- Identity Theft Protection: Identity theft protection services monitor a wide range of activities where your personal information may be misused. They look for misuse of your medical ID number, driver’s license, or other data that may not appear on your credit report.
- Credit Monitoring: Credit monitoring services track your credit report and alert you to changes. They alert you of hard inquiries, new accounts being opened, or address and name changes.
Many packages come with both features.
Can Identity Theft Protection Prevent Fraud?
While these services can’t prevent fraud, they can help you spot it early. Then you can take the appropriate action before the damage becomes greater. Identity theft protection services, in many instances, provide ways to mitigate these damages.
Identity theft protection services do NOT:
- Prevent your personal information from appearing on the dark web or other resources.
- Keep your information safe from data breaches.
- Stop someone from applying for credit and/or opening new accounts in your name.
- Prevent your bank account and credit card information from being stolen.
- Tell you if someone withdraws money or files a tax return in your name.
- Prevent anyone from selling your personal information or using it for their own means.
Protecting Yourself from Identity Theft
Since identity theft protection services are not a preventative measure, here are some tips for protecting your information:
- Freeze Your Credit Reports: Credit freezes prevent new accounts from being opened in your name.
- Monitor Your Credit Reports: Review your credit reports regularly for any unexpected activity.
- Be Wary of Scams: Verify the legitimacy of any advertisements you see.
- Secure Your Information: Store your personal information in a safe location.
In Conclusion: A Proactive Approach
Identity theft protection services are a valuable tool in today’s digital world, but they aren’t a complete solution. Being proactive in safeguarding your data is crucial. Consider these services to help stay informed and protected against the growing threats of identity theft and fraud. They can provide early warning signs and assistance so you can maintain your financial security.
