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Identity Guard Total Protection

Identity Guard Total Protection Review

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 Most complete ID theft detection service; Free Internet Security Suite; 30 Day Free Trial
Full Review:
 Identity Guard Total Protection is by far the most comprehensive identity theft detection service and really lives up to its Total Protection moniker. Total Protection has the most extensive fraud monitoring we've found and offers its whole service at a great price, just $14.99 per month after the 30-day free trial. The service has recently added several new features, most notably free Zone Alarm Internet Security Suite, an award-winning internet security solution including anti-virus, firewall, anti-phising and anti-spam software with hourly security updates. This normally costs $49.95 to buy but is free with your Total Protection enrollment and includes all virus definition updates and annual renewals as long as you maintain your membership. Of course if you don't want or need this security software you don't have to download it. In addition Identity Guard Total Protection now also gives you a 30-day free trial of their 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) as opposed to identity theft prevention services (such as LifeLock) that aim to stop identity theft from happening in the first place by setting fraud alerts on your credit file at all 3 credit bureaus, meaning a lender must take the extra step of calling you to verify your identity before processing a new application from you. Identity Guard goes far beyond other ID theft detection services by also 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. With the addition of Zone Alarm Internet Security software, Total Protection now also protects your computer and all your internet activity from fraud. 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. You get all those for free with your 30-day trial so even if you decide you don't like it, you get to keep at no cost all 3 credit reports and scores, a public records report and the Zone Alarm Internet Security Suite for free. Buying all these separately would cost you over $100.

The signup process is relatively quick - you will go through a short series of screens asking you for information, including payment information. To verify your identity, you will be asked for your social security number, date of birth, and the answers to 5 multiple-choice questions of information in your file. By default, the credit reports and alerts are available online and through e-mail. If you want hard copies mailed to you however, you can call their customer service number and get them at no extra charge. Your subscription includes access to a very useful credit analyzer. You can try out different scenarios, such as paying off your credit card by a certain amount or opening up a new loan, to see how your credit score will be affected. If you are monitoring your credit, this analyzer can help you to make the best choices to raise your credit score. In the event of a credit card theft, you can report the incident to Identity Guard and they will handle all the details for you, including reporting the cards as stolen and getting new cards issued to you. Identity Guard offers generous customer service phone hours (8am-11pm M-F and 9am-6pm Sat) as well as postal mail and e-mail contact methods. When we tried contacting them, a customer service representative answered almost immediately, and was able to provide useful advice about the service. Reporting for lost or stolen cards can be done on the phone or through your account, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For those really serious about identity theft protection, Identity Guard Total Protection is the best way to go.

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Service Details:

Price: Free 30 day trial; $14.99/mo.
Type: Detection - 3-bureau credit monitoring, fraud monitoring, internet security
Credit Reports Delivered: Credit reports and scores from all 3 bureaus
Fraud
Monitoring:		 Credit cards, Public records, social security, applications (cell phones, loans, etc), internet security
Mail List Removal: No
ID Theft Insurance/ Guarantee: $20,000 insurance

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