Identity Guard vs. LifeLock vs. Experian

LifeLock offers proactive identity theft protection by monitoring credit applications in your name and file sharing networks that you use. There are effectively three layers of protection: detect, alert and restore. The service looks for any suspicious activity during which your identity is used to obtain credit, loans or services under your name. When any potentially fraudulent activity is detected, you will be sent a notification by email, text or phone. LifeLock also offers restoration services if your identity is compromised.

Lifelock Pros and Cons

Lifelock Plans Include

• LifeLock Identity Alert System
• Reduced pre-approved credit card offers
• Lost wallet protection
• USPS Address change verification

While it may be true that you could do a lot of what LifeLock has to offer for yourself, do you really have the time to set protective measures in place and actively monitor your credit reports and other channels on a regular basis? Would you know what to do if your identity was compromised or your personal information was stolen? These are questions worth asking yourself when weighing DIY tactics against an automated service.

How Much Does LifeLock Cost?

Like many subscription services, LifeLock is available in a range of prices that will depend on your requirements. Lifelock is currently offer discounted rates. The prices are:

• LifeLock Standard — $11.99/mo (Discount: $8.99)
• LifeLock Advantage — $22.99/mo (Discount: $17.99)
• LifeLock Ultimate Plus — $34.99/mo (Discount: $26.99)
• LifeLock Junior — $5.99/mo (all prices include applicable sales tax)

If you are wondering about a LifeLock identity theft protection family plan, there isn’t one in the true sense, but they do offer the LifeLock Junior plan*, which allows children under the age of 18 to gain access to the same protection as their parents. Criminals can often resort to targeting a child’s personal records and information, and so LifeLock Junior is a good way for parents to gain peace of mind and ensure their children’s personal information is not stolen. For a family of four with two children under the age of 18, the LifeLock family plan cost would be $31.96.

Is Lifelock Worth It?

The consensus with the majority of LifeLock reviews from users is that the service is very good, with many saying the service gives them peace of mind and that they have received alerts when their identity was compromised. LifeLock reviews also seem to illustrate that users appreciate the 24-hour support line, with many LifeLock reviews citing instances of how LifeLock alerted them to fraudulent activity on one of their accounts.

Identity Guard is one of the most respected identity theft and fraud security services in the world, especially since it has teamed up with Norton. Given its prominence, it makes sense that so many people choose the Identity Guard Family Plan. It offers practically everything you could want in a family plan. When you think about Identity Guard versus Lifelock or IdentityForce, you have to consider Identity Guard’s affordable price and long list of services. Assuming that the company helps protect you from identity theft, you won’t have to worry about your plan’s lack of victim assistance services.

Identity Guard Pros and Cons

Common Identity Guard Reviews

Identity Guard often gets positive reviews from practically everyone who uses the service. In many Identity Guard reviews, you’ll find that clients like that Identity Guard has joined forces with IBM Watson to provide a higher level of identity protection. They appreciate the Identity Guard $1 million identity theft insurance that applies to every plan. Considering the Identity Guard price, technology and comprehensive monitoring services, it’s easy to see why so many people prefer Identity Guard.

Experian has an advantage over other identity theft protection services in that it is one of the main three credit bureaus that need to be monitored to avoid identity theft. Since credit is it’s business, you also get a lot of extra benefits from the service, including ability to dispute items on your credit report directly from the Experian website. It also helps that Experian has direct access to one of your credit reports, so it can be alerted to any fraudulent activity immediately instead of going through a third party. Here’s a full review of Experian’s identity theft protection service, called IdentityWorksSM:

Experian Pros and Cons

What Makes Experian Stand Out

One of the main things that makes Experian stand out is its engrained knowledge of credit reports and identity theft. Since it is already one of the three credit bureaus that compiles credit reports, it only made sense for the company to expand into identity theft protection services.

Another thing that makes Experian stand out is the wide range of things that it monitors to help protect against identity theft. The IdentityWorksSM Premium plan, which is cheaper than Lifelock’s highest plan, monitors everything from black market website activity, social security trace activity, change of address, court records, non-credit loan alerts and other areas that have the potential to alert you to identity theft, many that other identity theft protection services do not monitor.

Remember that identity theft protection can not help you with your debt, so if you need help getting your debt in order, try one of the best debt relief services like National Debt Relief or top-rated service Accredited Debt Relief, a review of which you can find here.

Common Experian Reviews

Experian is fairly new to the identity theft protection game, and it has been operating as a credit bureau business for decades, so it is difficult to differentiate the credit bureau Experian reviews from the identity theft protection Experian reviews. For example, Experian has an A- from the Better Business Bureau, but that score is mostly reflective of its credit bureau business, so there is no way to tell how that relates to IdentityWorksSM, although if there were any major problems with its identity theft protection service, it would drag the overall grade down much further.

Most other online Experian reviews of IdentityWorksSM give it fairly high marks, which is a good sign for the service. There are few actual consumer reviews of the service, which makes it difficult to determine just how happy actual customers are. Overall, though, from the professional Experian reviews, it seems like Experian’s IdentityWorksSM does a good job at identity theft protection.

Lifelock, Experian and Identity Guard are some of the top names in identity theft protection, but there are other options if you are not satisfied with any of those. Here are some lesser-known names in identity theft protection that might help you make the right decision.

If you’re comparing Identity Guard versus IdentityForce versus Lifelock, then you will have a difficult decision to make. All three companies offer good services that protect clients from identity theft and fraud. At $14.99 per month, though, it costs a little bit more than some of its competitors. Considering that other companies provide extensive features that check black market websites and protect you from lost wallets, you may want to avoid IdentityForce unless you want a simple, straightforward approach to keeping your identity secure.

IdentityForce Pros and Cons

Common IdentityForce Reviews

IdentityForce doesn’t offer as many identity theft guard services as other companies, but it has an affordable price that makes it appealing to people who want basic coverage. Overall, clients appreciate that the company gives them dedicated case managers, comprehensive monitoring services and strong customer service. When comparing Identity Guard versus IdentityForce, some people fall on Identity Guard’s side because the company offers more plans. Those who like to keep things simple, however, often prefer IdentityForce.

IdentityForce has a strong following and maintains contracts with a number of government agencies, including the FAA and the FBI. Overall, user reviews are positive, with many verified users citing the company’s outstanding customer service and the speed with which restoration and protection services were implemented.

TrustedID is actually owned by Equifax, and considering the recent Equifax data breach and the credit bureau’s its recent documented issues with identity theft, it seems like it might have some issues when it comes to reputation when dealing with identity theft protection. Nevertheless, we have done an in-depth look at TrustedID to give you a better understanding of how the identity theft protection service works.

TrustedID Pros and Cons

What Makes TrustedID Stand Out

TrustedID is much like Experian’s IdentityWorksSM in that it is owned by one of the three credit bureaus, Equifax, so it has a knowledge of credit reports and identity theft. Unlike IdentityWork, TrustedID was an independent identity theft protection company before it was bought by Equifax, so it combines its own knowledge of identity theft with Equifax’s knowledge of credit.

The other thing that makes TrustedID stand out is its family plan. You can add everyone within your immediate family to your plan for just $29.99, which is a great deal for larger families. If it’s just you and your spouse, other service provide better discounts for spouses and significant others.

Common TrustedID Reviews

TrustedID tends to get mixed reviews, both from professionals and actual consumers. TrustedID reviews from professionals do tend to be more positive, but generally top out at 4 out of 5 stars, making it second to heavy hitters like Lifelock and Experian. TrustedID also does not have a rating from the Better Business Bureau, so there is no way to compare it to other identity theft protection services in that field.

Consumer reviews of TrustedID tend to be a little more harsh, although most online company reviews do tend to skew more toward angry customers as opposed to happy customers. A combination of reviews on Yelp and other consumer sites talked about how TrustedID’s customer service was good, but what the service offered was often confusing, and some complained about being charged more than they originally agreed to.

Keep in mind that while identity theft protection services do monitor your credit report, they cannot make changes or improve your credit in any way. If you are looking for ways to improve your credit, check out our best credit repair reviews to get a better idea on how they work. Our Sky Blue review and Lexington Law review compare the top two companies.

It can be difficult to determine exactly which identity theft protection service is best for your family. Identity Guard vs. Lifelock, LifeLock vs. Experian, or another identity theft protection service entirely? Which should you choose? It really depends on the service. Each identity theft protection company offers pros and cons, so it depends on what you are looking for. Here are some of the pros for each service:

Lifelock: Best for people who are constantly online

Lifelock is the #1 name in identity theft protection for a reason; it has all the bells and whistles you need to protect yourself at a reasonable price. That combined with the fact that you also get Norton protection for your devices make Lifelock the best all-around protection when it comes to identity theft. You get all of Norton’s security features to not only protect your computer and phone, but your online presence as well.

Identity Guard: Best for people who love deals

Identity Guard is not only one of the most affordable services, but it also is constantly offering deals for new users. Currently, you can get 20% off when you sign up. It also offers discounts if you sign up for an annual plan as opposed to a monthly plan. Identity Guard also offers great family discounts.

IdentityForce: Best for protecting your family

IdentityForce offers a great add-on to their standard service for your children. Child Watch monitors your child’s information for fraud or identity theft, and also offers the same $1 million in insurance that you get with the standard plan. For only $2.75/month for an add-on, it’s a pretty good deal.

LifeLock doesn’t have a family plan, but if your family is only you and your spouse, you can get their basic plan for both of you for less than $20 with our 10 percent discount.

Experian: Best for people concerned about their credit

Experian allows you to not only protect your identity but also keep your credit in check. It monitors your credit daily and sends you email updates if there are any changes to your credit report. It also offers Experian Credit Boost, which allows you to raise your credit score almost instantly.

How do the other services stack up? If you choose the LifeLock Ultimate plan ($26.99/month), you get monthly updates about your TransUnion credit score and reports. IdentityForce monitors all three of your credit bureau scores (as does LifeLock), but only gives you access to your credit scores once a year. For someone who wants to monitor their credit as well as protect their identity, this can be a huge drawback.

Some Identity Theft Protection Services Offer Specific Features

Here are IdentityForce’s special features:

• Insurance records
• Vehicle registration monitoring

LifeLock’s basic plan has basic features, but LifeLock’s Ultimate plan offers these extra features:

• Surveillance of unregulated global networks and file-sharing sites
• Checking and savings account application alerts
• Will remove you from mailing lists