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Identity Guard Total Protection with ZoneAlarm Review | Go to Site | View Full Comparison Chart |
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| Most complete solution for total online and offline security; Free 30-day trial | |
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Identity Guard's Total Protection with ZoneAlarm really lives up to its name. We believe it is the most effective total protection you can get to safeguard your computer and your identity. This service is unique in that it combines the top rated Internet security software from ZoneAlarm with the extensive identity theft protection services provided by Identity Guard. This is important because the goal of many hackers is to access your personal information and perpetrate any number of identity theft related crimes against you. Both of these services are very good as stand alone products but are exceptional when combined together to give you the ultimate in Internet and identity security. Identity Guard has recently further enhanced its offering by offering a free 30-day trial of its full service, making trying it and downloading the free Zone Alarm Internet Security Suite a no-risk proposition.
The ZoneAlarm software offers extensive protection against viruses, spyware and adware by identifying risks in real-time and preventing them from being downloaded on to your computer. ZoneAlarm has historically been able to identify and block new viruses and other malware in 0-2 hours which means that it is extremely effective against even the newest threats to your computer. Installing ZoneAlarm is extremely simple and intuitive. It took us about ten minutes to download the software and another ten minutes to configure through the easy to use step-by-step installer. This configuration process included a complete scan of our computer's hard drive to identify any harmful programs that may be present. The ZoneAlarm installation also includes several options for setting up default security settings on your computer. We selected the 'auto-learn security settings' which automatically provided the appropriate security based on our computer's existing configurations. We tested out the effectiveness of the ZoneAlarm Internet security software by visiting websites that we knew to be high risk and downloading programs that we knew included spyware. In each case, ZoneAlarm effectively alerted us to the potential issues present in either the website or the program we were downloading with simple easy to understand warning messages. Another helpful feature of the ZoneAlarm Internet security software is their Wireless PC Protection. This tool helped us configure wireless networks in range of our computer and alerted us to any potential security issues present in those networks. Given the frequency that PC users access any number of wireless networks in public places such as coffee shops, office lobbies and airports, we feel that the wireless protection is another big plus for ZoneAlarm. The computer and Internet security provided by ZoneAlarm is bolstered by the addition of Identity Guard's identity theft detection service. Identity theft detection services like Identity Guard help to detect that you have become a victim of identity theft by monitoring your credit file at all 3 credit bureaus (commonly called credit monitoring). Identity Guard goes far beyond other identity theft detection services by also proactively monitoring public records for any changes in your name, scanning for application or social security fraud, and monitoring the Internet's black market for any use of your credit cards or other personal information. They've also recently added anti-keylogging software, lost wallet protection (they can cancel your credit card accounts and give you up to $2,000 advance if you need it) and a Personal ID Risk Assessment. Like many credit monitoring services, Identity Guard Total Protection completes daily scans of all 3 of your credit files and notifies you of any changes. It also gives you all 3 of your credit reports and all 3 of your credit scores every quarter. If anything is found, they will alert you by e-mail immediately. They also make it very easy to place fraud alerts with the bureaus yourself if you want to take that extra preventative step. $20,000 of identity theft insurance is also included in your subscription in case the worst somehow does still happen. Identity Guard with ZoneAlarm is priced slightly differently than the other Internet security software services we reviewed. Rather than paying an annual fee subscribers pay $14.99 per month which includes all of the features detailed above. The cost of this product is slightly higher than the other services we reviewed at about $180 per year, but it is actually quite a deal when you consider that you are essentially receiving three services, credit report monitoring, identity theft protection and Internet security software, for the same price that you would pay if you purchased Identity Guard as a standalone product. Plus, even if you choose to cancel your Identity Guard subscription within the 30 day free trial period you can keep the ZoneAlarm software (although you wouldn't receive any of the virus and spyware definitions which keep your computer safe against new threats), your 3-bureau credit report and score, and your public records report. All this alone would cost over $100 and they're willing to give it to you for free just to try the product. Overall, Identity Guard Total Protection with ZoneAlarm offers a level of protection for your PC and overall identity that is unmatched by any of the other Internet security software providers that we have reviewed. System Requirements: Microsoft Windows 2000, Windows XP or Windows Vista |
| Price: | Free with continued enrollment; 30 day free trial |
| Virus Protection: | Instantly identifies and protects against new threats |
| Adware and Spyware Protection: | Spyware removal; Blocks access to spyware websites |
| Identity Theft Protection: | 3-bureau credit monitoring; Extensive online/offline fraud monitoring |
| Spam and Phishing Protection: | Blocks potential spam, viruses or phishing emails |
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