Does Your Bank Offer Identity Theft Protection?
Your bank could be your first line of defense against identity theft, but it’s not always the strongest.
Banks offer fraud protection, but that’s not the same as comprehensive identity theft protection.
Many banks provide some level of fraud protection, which is essential. They keep an eye on your accounts for unusual activity, like large withdrawals or purchases in a different city. They might also offer services to help you dispute fraudulent charges.
However, true identity theft protection goes further.
This includes services like credit monitoring, which alerts you to changes in your credit report, and identity restoration, which helps you recover if your identity is stolen. Banks often don’t offer all of these services.
Identity theft protection through your bank has drawbacks.
While convenient, relying solely on your bank for identity theft protection has limitations. Banks typically focus on protecting your financial accounts, but identity theft can affect many aspects of your life, including your credit score, medical records, and government benefits.
Consider free identity theft protection tools.
There are free resources that you can use to help safeguard your identity. Check your credit reports regularly from the three main credit bureaus for free at annualcreditreport.com. You can also set up fraud alerts, which notify you of any suspicious activity with your credit.
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