Norton’s LifeLock is a well-known name in the identity theft protection space, but a recent review by Business Insider’s personal finance team found that LifeLock falls short compared to its competitors, particularly when considering its price. Here’s a breakdown of LifeLock’s features and a comparison with other services.
LifeLock: Overview
LifeLock, a service offered by digital security company Norton, boasts brand recognition, but its identity theft protection service may not be the best value.
While LifeLock offers some appealing features, it has notable drawbacks related to cost and feature limitations. The service’s pricing structure and the features included in its basic plans have raised concerns among consumers, especially when other providers offer more comprehensive protection at lower prices.
LifeLock: Pros
- Identity Theft Insurance: Provides significant financial protection against identity theft-related losses, with coverage limits varying based on the plan level. High-tier plans may offer up to $1 million in coverage for lawyers and experts.
- Brand Recognition: LifeLock benefits from Norton’s established reputation as a trusted security provider.
- Dark Web Monitoring: Alerts users to instances where their personal information appears on dark web sites.
LifeLock: Cons
- Can Be Expensive: Introductory promotional pricing is often attractive, but costs can significantly increase after the first year of service. The most expensive plan can cost over $300 per year after the promotion.
- Limited Basic Plan Features: Lower-tier plans may only offer limited credit monitoring and a restricted set of features.
- Customer Service Concerns: Some users have reported difficulties contacting customer support or experiencing slow response times to issues.
LifeLock Standard:
- Cost: $11.99 monthly or $89.99 for the first year, then $124.99 upon renewal.
- Features:
- Social Security number alerts and credit monitoring.
- Monitoring of the Equifax credit bureau.
- U.S.-based identity restoration specialists.
- Stolen wallet protection.
- USPS address change verification.
- Dark web monitoring.
- $25,000 in identity theft insurance.
- Features:
LifeLock Advantage:
- Cost: $22.99 monthly or $179.88 for the first year, then $239.99 upon renewal.
- Additional Features (compared to Standard):
- TransUnion identity lock and reports.
- Payday loan lock.
- Criminal activity monitoring.
- Financial account monitoring.
- Phone takeover monitoring.
- $100,000 in identity theft insurance.
- Additional Features (compared to Standard):
LifeLock Ultimate Plus:
- Cost: $34.99 monthly or $239.88 for the first year, then $339.99 upon renewal.
- Additional Features (compared to Advantage):
- Tri-bureau credit monitoring (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion).
- 401(k) and investment alerts.
- Home title monitoring.
- Social media monitoring.
- File-sharing network searches.
- Sex offender registry searches.
- Additional Features (compared to Advantage):
Norton 360 with LifeLock Select:
- Cost: $17.99 monthly or $179.99 annually
- Additional Features:
- Secure VPN.
- Ad-tracker blocker.
- SafeCam for Windows PCs.
- Privacy monitor.
- Security for PCs, Macs, smartphones, and tablets.
- Cloud backup for Windows PCs.
- Virus Protection Promise.
- Password manager.
- Parental controls.
- Additional Features:
LifeLock vs. Competitors
When compared to other identity theft protection services, LifeLock’s value proposition becomes less clear, primarily because of its costs.
LifeLock vs. Aura
Aura offers a single plan with comprehensive features at a price point comparable to LifeLock’s cheaper plans. This plan includes identity theft monitoring, credit monitoring from all three bureaus, and device and online safety.
LifeLock vs. IdentityForce
IdentityForce offers robust features, including a credit scoring simulator and cybersecurity measures. However, LifeLock’s family plans are considerably more expensive than IdentityForce.
Conclusion
LifeLock’s identity theft protection service can be a useful tool, especially when paired with Norton 360’s cybersecurity features. However, its pricing structure and the lack of certain features in lower-tier plans may make other identity theft protection services more compelling options for consumers seeking robust protection at a more competitive price point.
