LifeLock receives 5 star rating from NextAdvisor.com

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January 1st, 2008 - Posted by Joe

LifeLock is a great preventive identity theft protection service at a great price. As a special offer for visitors to NextAdvisor.com, you can now get 30 days free AND $21 off the price of the service. You must click the link from our site to get this special promotion. Preventive services employ tools like setting fraud alerts on your credit file with all 3 bureaus, which means that lenders must call or write you for verification before they can issue new credit. Since most identity theft occurs when thieves use your personal information to open new credit accounts (credit cards, bank accounts, phone accounts, etc.), fraud alerts prevent identity theft by stopping the fraudulent accounts from being opened in the first place. (There are also what we call detection services that monitor any changes to your credit report and are a great way to catch identity theft in its early stages and before damage is done. They do not, however, help prevent ID theft.) The CEO of LifeLock stands behind his product so firmly that he will gladly hand out his social security number on the website. While it is a great testimony for his service, we don't recommend you try it at home! LifeLock is a preventive identity theft protection service – their sole purpose is identity protection and recovery for you and your family. (They have reduced-price plans for children as well.)

LifeLock works by installing and maintaining fraud alerts on your data with the 3 major credit bureaus. What this does is force a bank or other credit issuer to contact you personally before any new account can be opened in your name. Fraud alerts are a method of extra protection and they do not hurt your credit or score in any way. They also send you a 3-bureau credit report annually, at the time of and the anniversary of your signup with the company. LifeLock also stops pre-approved credit offers and junk mail with your name on it from circulating, thereby reducing your chance of having your identity stolen.

LifeLock recently added a new feature that is included in their service called WalletLock, which we think is excellent. If your wallet is ever stolen, you just call LifeLock and speak to a WalletLock specialist, who will contact each credit card, bank or document issuing company, cancel your affected accounts and complete the paperwork and steps necessary to replace your lost documents, including your credit/debit cards, driver's license, social security card, insurance cards, checkbook – even travelers checks – at no additional cost.

LifeLock's guarantee is one of the best out of any of the top companies for identity protection, and it is clearly stated on their web site. They offer $1 million towards reimbursement, lawyers' fees, and clearing your name if your identity is ever stolen. While this guarantee is great, direct monetary losses from identity theft are almost always much smaller since you are not legally responsible for paying any fraudulent debt a thief accumulated. The real cost of identity theft is the loss of ability to get credit for an extended period of time, the time and effort it takes to restore your good name, and many other adverse consequences that can even include mistaken incarceration.

Signing up was quick for us, and after 2 screens the company clearly labeled what we could expect from our account over the next 12 months or so. (For example, within 2 weeks we will be notified about the fraud alerts from the bureaus, within 2 months our junk mail will be drastically reduced, and every 90 days our fraud alerts will be reissued.) Upon contacting customer service by phone with some questions, we didn't have to wait more than a moment for someone to pick up the phone, and they are available 24/7 for any questions or problems. Unlike other services, LifeLock offers no login services at their site – you will have to call their number for any adjustments to your account. While this may be a bit inconvenient, it makes their system completely hacker-proof, as they claim that very few people at LifeLock ever get near customer data. LifeLock offers both monthly and yearly payment options for individuals and families, as well as a Business-class service. Overall, LifeLock is a great service to help you prevent identity theft. Relative to TrustedID, another top service, it lacks the credit card protection technology and the credit freeze option, but it does add the junk mail unsubscribe (TrustedID has preapproved credit card offer unsubscribe but not general junk mail unsubscribe) although this is certainly not 100% effective and you can easily do it yourself. LifeLock also has more generous customer service hours.