Lifelock or TrustedID:Which Service Is Right For You?

Updated July 19, 2010

• Read our detailed Lifelock review
• Read our detailed TrustedID review

We live in a world of uncertainty, and more and more people are becoming concerned about the safety of their identities. We also have more choices than ever before and it can be confusing trying to determine what you need to protect yourself and which product will offer you the greatest security.

If you’ve done any research at all then you’ve come across some experts recommending Lifelock and others TrustedID. Both identity theft services have recently introduced upgraded and improved versions of their flagship protection plans. Lifelock launched Command Center™ last December and TrustedID introduced IDEssentials™ in July of this year.

As the identity fraud protection industry has evolved, many popular services have moved toward a monitoring detection type service. This is an admission in the industry that complete identity protection is virtually impossible. Tech savvy identity thieves can hack into databases and steal millions of records without anybody realizing it.

Both Lifelock and TrustedID understand this and have taken a very similar approach to identity theft protection. We’ll expose some of the similarities as well as differences between these two popular services.

	Command Center	IDEssentials
Price	$13.50/month	$10.42/month
Promotion	30 Days Free & 10% Off	15 Days Free Trial
Coverage	$1 Million Total Service Guarantee	$1,000,000 Service Warranty
Protection Type	Fraud Alerts/Scanning	Fraud Alerts/Credit Monitoring
Credit Monitoring	No	Instant 3 Bureau Report
Credit Reports	Annually Major Bureaus
Credit Score	No
Family Plan	No
Credit Freezes	No
Anit-Virus/ Spyware	No
Sex offender Reports		No
PayDay Loans	No

How are Lifelock and Trusted ID Similar?

• Opt-out of pre-approved credit offers
• Have a $1,000,000 warranty
• Fraud Alerts (Called ‘Lender DoubleCheck’ by TrustedID)
• Order yearly credit reports
• Wallet protection
• Scan internet black markets looking for misuse of your information
• 24/7 on call helpline

Both LifeLock and Trusted ID will remove you from junk mail lists and place fraud alerts on your behalf. They will also scan the internet for your information on the web. They look for your date of birth, address and social security number and notify you immediately if any activity is found with your information attached to it. With Trusted ID you can even ask them to watch for your bank account and credit card number.

Both services also offer wallet protection which can give you some small sense of security when your wallet is gone. Having someone to call and help you take the necessary steps to replace your license, insurance cards, and other forms of ID as well as helping you with canceling and replacing your credit and debit cards can be a great comfort.As you can see, both LifeLock and Trusted ID offer very similar coverage and have very similar basic features.

How Do Lifelock and Trusted ID Differ?

• Read our detailed Lifelock review
• Read our detailed Trusted ID review

Credit Report Monitoring

With the introduction of IDEssentials, TrustedID added credit monitoring of your report and score with all three major credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. TrustedID will scan your reports daily and alert you if they detect any fraudulent or suspicious activity. Lifelock does not offer credit monitoring.

Credit Freezes

Like Lifelock, Trusted ID sets and renews fraud alerts every ninety days. What sets TrustedID apart is the option to place credit freezes on your credit file, a far more secure measure of protection. (Read our article on Fraud Alerts vs Credit Freezes for more information) While you can do this yourself, having a service perform this for you can come in handy when you can’t remember your PIN number.

Personal Information Scanning

Lifelock recently launched their Command Center which actively monitors unregulated internet and file sharing networks for your personal information. In addition they scan payday loans, sex offender registries, and other public records to find your information. If they find it, they’ll alert you by email and help protect you against accidental information disclosures.

Anti Virus Protection

Trusted ID also keeps an eye on your computer, giving you an anti-spyware program that can be installed on as many as three computers. An unsecured computer is at high risk for hackers, spyware and viruses, and a good protection program can cost you as much as $100 a year. With trusted ID, not only does this software automatically update every day, it is given to you at no charge so long as you have an account with Trusted ID. This benefit almost pays for the cost of protection itself.

Lost Wage Coverage

Probably the greatest difference between LifeLock and Trusted ID is in the fine print of their identity theft insurance guarantees. While both claim to have $1,000,000 policies, they cover very different things. According to the non profit Identity Theft Resource Center, the primary financial loss of identity theft victims are the lost wages involved when they need to spend 30-60 hours contacting their financial institutions and clearing up their credit.

Unfortunately, Lifelock’s policy does not cover lost wages while Trusted ID offers an industry best $5,000 /4weeks. Most of Lifelock’s coverage is for hiring attorneys and investigators to “clear your good name”, something most cases of identity theft probably don’t require. Most victims of identity theft do need to spend countless hours calling their credit card companies and filling out fraud affidavits. Trusted ID will reimburse you for this time while Lifelock will not. You can read more about Identity Theft Insurance here.

Family Coverage

Another large difference is family coverage. Lifelock doesn’t offer any discounts to cover your spouse, elderly grand parents and charges $25/year to cover minor children. Trusted ID covers the entire household living under one roof for less than the cost another policy.

To illustrate the wide disparity in cost; for a family of 2 adults and two minor children, the cost of protection for Lifelock would be $347/year ($148.50 for each adult and $25 for each child). Trusted ID’s coverage would only be $240.00 These are advertised prices and if you use any of our links, you’ll receive significant discounts.

Large families need family pricing

For a larger family, the price differences are more dramatic. For the same family living with two grandparents, the Lifelock plan would cost $643/year and TrustedID would be unchanged at $240.00/year (provided all the adults are part of the same household). Anyway you look at it, these are significant savings.

If you’re known to the public as “octomom” or your last name is “Duggar”, then it’s really a no-brainer. If the Octomom were covered by Lifelock, she would need to pay $348.50 while the near identical coverage from TrustedID would be $240.00.

The Duggar family from Discover Channel fame would pay $747 for their 18 children with Lifelock and with TrustedID, you guessed it, $240.00. I sense a sponsorship deal here somewhere.

These may be extreme examples but a large majority of victims come from families and it certainly makes sense to protect the identities of those you care about.

Our Opinion

LifeLock and Trusted ID both have reputations of stability and trustworthiness, and in the end both of them are good choices to help protect you from identity theft. We feel that TrustedID edges out Lifelock as a service that offers more for less.

In addition to almost everything Lifelock offers, with Trusted ID, you have the option to place credit freezes, free virus /spyware protection for your computers, credit monitoring, your credit score, medical benefits review, and when looking to add a child, spouse, or grandparent to your coverage, TrustedID has the best pricing available.

Lifelock did pioneer the entire identity protection industry and was the first to offer a million dollar warranty but the value in TrustedID’s offerings is just to strong to ignore. It’s almost like TrustedID was designed to imitate Lifelock, offer more, and then charge less.

Before making a final decision take the time to ask what services are important to you. How much coverage do you need, and how many people in your house do you need to protect? Both LifeLock and Trusted ID are companies with good reputations who will help protect you from identity theft and, should the worst happen, help you regain your identity and your credit.

• Visit Lifelock 10% Discount and 30 Days Free
• Visit Trusted ID 15 Days Free Trial

Why Is TrustedID Better Than Lifelock?

If you’ve been researching various identity theft services, at some point you may have come across a comparison between Lifelock and TrustedID. Lifelock has probably done the most to create “brand awareness” behind its bold marketing campaigns but does that mean it offers the best value for consumers?

Maybe not if you compare it to a service like TrustedID. Here are six reasons why:

Credit Report Monitoring

With the introduction of IDEssentials™, TrustedID provides you with a comprehensive view of your credit history with all three major credit bureaus, along with daily alerts to keep you up-to-date on any changes to your credit reports. If you spot potential fraud, a Protection Specialists will make sure you’re protected and resolve the issue quickly.

Credit Locks

No other company offers credit freezes on all the three major credit reporting agencies. Equifax’s IDPatrol comes close but only allows you to place a credit freeze on the Equifax report and not Experian or TransUnion. See our section on Fraud Alerts & Credit Freezes to understand the benefits of a Credit Freeze over a Fraud Alert.

1,000,000 Service Warranty

You can’t really appreciate the $1,000,000 Service Warranty unless you read the fine print. Not only does it offer the same amount of protection as Lifelock’s 1 Million Total Service Guarantee, but includes coverage for lost wages, a key point Lifelock does not cover. In fact, TrustedID offers more than twice the coverage as its nearest competitor in an area where the majority of identity theft victims say they incur loss.

According to the Identity Theft Resource Center, the average identity theft victim spends under a $1,000 to restore their identity. Although most of the work involved is tedious and time consuming, it usually does not require attorneys or investigators to get involved. What most identity theft victims need is compensation for lost wages and that is why TrustedID’s $1,000,000 Service Warranty stands out. See our section on Identity Theft Insurance to better understand what these policies cover and what to look for.

Family Protection

No other protection service offers a family plan. Equifax’s Credit Watch Gold does but is limited to two adults. TrustedID’s IDEssentials™ can be purchased to cover an entire household. That means children, spouse, and grandparents can be covered all under one family policy. Starting at less than the price of two policies, you can see where the savings add up compared to buying individual plans for every member of your household. Child identity theft is a growing problem and if you have children, TrustedID’s family plan can save you money.

Medical Benefits Protection

One of the newest and growing forms of identity theft is medical benefits fraud. TrustedID will review your medical benefits statements to ensure no one is abusing benefits entitled to you.

Anti-Spyware Software

One of the key areas identity theft occurs is by malicious hackers breaking into your computer and stealing usernames and passwords. With TrustedID, you’ll receive state-of-the-art anti=spyware software which you can install up to three different computers.

How Does TrustedID’s IDEssentials™ Work?

• 3-Bureau Credit Monitoring

Your credit report will be monitored daily for fraudulent or suspicious activity with all three major credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion.

• Online Access To Your Credit Report

You’ll have instant online access to your credit reports from the three major credit bureaus.

• Online Access To Your Credit Score

If you’ve ever wondered what your credit score was with the three major credit bureaus, TrustedID will give instant online access to your score.

• Public Database Scanning

TrustedID will monitor hundreds of public record databases that contain information about everything from your marital status and address to issues of the court and business applications. If they detect anything that looks unusual and could lead to identity theft, you’ll be alerted immediately.

• Scans Internet For Your Data

TrustedID will regularly patrol underground black market internet sites where identity thieves buy, sell, and trade credit card numbers, social security numbers, bank account numbers, and names and addresses. If any of your personal information is discovered, you’ll be alerted immediately.



• Identity Threat Score

TrustedID uses advanced technology to search millions of public and private database records and then analyzes this information for patterns that could indicate if you are – or are about to become – a victim of identity theft.

• Lost Wallet Protection

Store your important information with TrustedID – credit and debit card numbers, insurance information, and more – and if you ever lose your wallet or need access to your information, TrustedID’s On-Call Protection Specialists can help you cancel your cards and replace them as quickly as possible.

• Fraud Alerts

TrustedID gives you the option to place fraud alerts if your identity is at risk, and with our Fraud Alert Reminder service, we will help you ensure your fraud alerts are renewed with the credit bureaus every 90 days.

• Medical Benefits Protection

One of the newest and most dangerous forms of identity theft is medical benefit fraud. TrustedID will help members review their medical benefit statements to nobody else is being treated with your medical benefits.

• Spyware Protection

You receive state-of-the-art anti-spyware software which you can install on up to three different computers. The anti-spyware technology blocks and removes malicious programs that hackers use to track your passwords and compromise your online accounts.

• $1,000,000 Warranty Protection

In the unlikely event an identity theft occurs under their protection, you can rest easy to know TrustedID will support you with their service warranty which includes a best-in-class lost wage limit.

• CreditLock™

Although fraud alerts are helpful, credit freezes on your credit file will completely shut down access to your credit report. *Additional costs are involved.

Analysis

At $10.42/month, TrustedID is affordably priced and if you use any of our links, we’ve negotiated a 14 days free trial. However the real savings are found in the TrustedID’s generous family pricing plans. TrustedID will cover a complete household for less than the price of two policies, $20/month. That means grandparents, children, and anyone else living with you can be covered under a single family plan.

In addition to the internet and public database scanning TrustedID does, you also have the option of employing credit freezes, something no other service offers. The Identity Threat Score™ gives you an easy-to-understand way to gauge your current risk levels and allow you to take the necessary steps to reduce the chances of becoming an identity theft victim

With the introduction of IDEssentials, TrustedID not only scans public databases for your personal information but offers credit monitoring as well – something Lifelock’s Command Center does not. You’ll have instant access to your credit report and score as well.

TrustedID offers the $1 Million Service Warranty and you can’t really appreciate the $1,000,000 Service Warranty unless you read the fine print. Not only does it offer the same amount of protection as Lifelock’s 1 Million Total Service Guarantee, but includes coverage for lost wages, a key point Lifelock does not cover. In fact, TrustedID offers more than twice the coverage as its nearest competitor in an area where the majority of identity theft victims say they incur loss.

Opinion

TrustedID’s IDFreeze product coupled with CreditLock is our editor’s choice for overall identity theft protection. They are the only ones to offer the ability to place credit freezes on all three credit reporting bureaus and with family discounts and “best in class” service warranty, it’s easy to see why this is our top choice.

THE GOOD:TrustedID has combined almost everything you could want in an identity protection service: credit report monitoring, credit locks, database scanning, $1 million service warranty, anti-spyware software, medical benefits protection, and a generous family plan.

THE BAD:Significant increase for monthly plans.

Visit TrustedID to sign up for the 14 day free trial offer.

TrustedID Finally Offers Credit Monitoring With The Introduction of IDEssentials™

Read our detailed TrustedID review

TrustedID recently launched a new product which combines identity theft prevention
solution with a credit protection service that monitors your credit with three different
credit bureaus with reporting and score package. The new product provides
consumers with a complete identity theft prevention solution.

IDEssentials allows consumers to acquire protection services which are usually
charged separately with other identity protection services by providing a one stop
protection service for one price. IDEssentials users can choose to pay a low monthly
fee or save money by signing up for a yearly subscription plan. TrustedID also offers
a family plan for IDEssentials on a monthly or yearly subscription plan with a one
million dollar service warranty in the event you become a victim of identity theft.

IDEssentials provides a daily monitoring service with the three major credit bureaus
including Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax with immediate notification if there has
been a change in your credit report. The service also provides you with annual credit
reports and credit scores.

The identity theft package you receive with IDEssentials contains identity monitoring
services which keep track of hundreds of databases for public records that contain
your personal information, monitoring of the black market on the Internet where
criminals sell your personal and financial information, an identity threat score which
will provide you with information on identity theft risk and the steps you should take
to provide security, protection of medical benefits which prevents criminals from
accessing your medical information, and support which is available around the clock
seven days a week.

IDEssentials provides more than a dozen identity theft protection solutions within
the program and offers the services of the Data Breach Solution Group which
was launched by TrustedID to provide quick response for consumers who have
experienced data breaches. The flagship product ID Essentials is added to a number
of other award winning products by TrustedID for complete identity protection
services at an affordable price.

TrustedID Promotion

Try TrustedID risk-free for 30 days and get 15% off.

Best Identity Theft Protection For Seniors?

Senior citizens looking for identity theft protection have different requirements than say a young couple in their thirties raising a family. It’s a question I often get asked myself as an individual approaching retirement age.

First, seniors who are on fixed income may not need wage-loss protection or care about some of the more tech-oriented gizmos like IDVault or Mobile Lockbox, features that Identity Guard offers. Second, seniors have to be weary since as a demographic they’re constantly targeted by fraudsters and scam artists. Face it, we grew up in a more trusting time and the world around us has become increasingly cynical and far more dangerous.

Most seniors I talk to want affordable identity theft protection that will cover a spouse without paying for any of the features designed for a younger market. Also, seniors should look for a service with excellent customer service. The last thing any senior citizen wants to hear are words like “forum” or “chat online”. Should you become a victim of identity theft, you’ll want a resolution expert assisting you through the recovery process.

No service can completely guarantee protection but almost all services can drastically reduce your exposure to identity theft and will guarantee complete recovery if you do become a victim while under their protection.

So What’s Best For Seniors?

• Read our detailed TrustedID review

After looking at all the available plans, TrustedID’s individual or family plan is the one I recommend for seniors who fall into this category.

Family Pricing

TrustedID will cover an entire household for $13.46/month and that means it doesn’t matter if you have just a spouse or your kids have moved back in. (In this economy, not an uncommon situation.) TrustedID will cover the entire household. Lifelock on the other hand, will charge you a new subscription per adult.

Credit Freezes

TrustedID goes beyond fraud alerts and is the only service to offer credit freezes on all three of the credit bureaus. An AARP article on identity theft recommends placing credit freezes. For more information, read our article on the differences between fraud alerts and credit freezes.

Medical Benefits Protection

An increasing form of identity theft fraud that seniors are especially vulnerable to is medical benefit fraud. TrustedID will review your medical benefit statements to ensure that you and your family are the only ones being treated with your medical benefits.

TrustedID Fraud Scanning

While TrustedID isn’t a credit monitoring service like Identity Guard or ProtectMyID, it does offer sophisticated scanning services that will scan the black market internet sites where identity thieves buy and sell information. TrustedID will scan for your credit card numbers, social security numbers, bank account numbers, name and addresses. If they find that any of your information has been compromised, you’ll be alerted immediately.

24 On-Call Protection Specialists

Sometimes, you just need to speak to a live person. TrustedID has On-Call Protection Specialists that will assist you if you think anybody is trying to steal your identity.

TrustedID is a highly recommended service for identity theft protection and especially for seniors, it’s the protection service that gives you everything you need at a price that’s affordable.

Try TrustedID FREE For 30 Days

You’ve decided you need identity theft protection. Congratulations, that’s the easy part…

It seems we’re inundated with commercials and advertisements from Lifelock, Identity Guard, TrustedID and the countless other identity theft services. There’s certainly no shortage of protection services and if you’ll just give them the chance, they’ll all give you plenty of reasons why they’re the best identity theft protection available.

I’m sure these companies hired expensive ad agencies to create marketing campaigns that highlight their strengths, gloss over shortcomings, and explain why they’re better than the competition.

What’s a discerning consumer to do?

It takes a discerning eye to separate the “chaff from the wheat” so to speak. Our staff at IDProtectionGuide takes a certain pride in delivering analysis you just won’t find anywhere. In fact, most of what you’ll read elsewhere sounds like warmed over ad copy. Much of our information comes from trying out the individual services and many hours on the phone. Let’s dig in.

After reporting and reviewing on the identity theft industry the last few years, we’ve noticed that there are a few consumer profiles that will cover just about 99% of the potential market. Don’t worry if you find yourself in one or more profiles. In understanding where different services rank, it may help you better understand the strengths and weaknesses of an identity protection service and help you make a better informed buying decision.

How Identity Theft Protection Works

The Limits Of Identity Theft Prevention

The first concept to understand is no protection is foolproof. That doesn’t mean identity theft prevention is without merit, far from it actually. It’s just that no plan or service exists that can guarantee complete protection. Why? You have no control over your information once it leaves your hands. What’s to prevent the auto loan application you filled out from falling into the wrong hands? How about your mortgage application or your medical records? Ever hear of data breeches? In 2009, one single breech compromised over 130 million records. So much of your information is already in circulation, we simply can’t prevent the countless ways that data can be lost, stolen or innocently given away.

Prevention vs. Detection

In the early days of identity theft protection, there was much fuss made of Lifelock’s use of fraud alerts as a preventive measure. The problem with preventive measures like these are first, it’s completely free to do yourself and second, its akin to locking your front door and leaving the windows and back doors open. As the identity theft industry evolved, companies have moved toward sophisticated detection methods and scanning the internet for your records.

Many people associate identity theft with financial or credit fraud but there is also criminal, employment, and even medical identity theft. Many detection services will scan not just your credit report but public databases, court records and even sex offender registry reports. Even Lifelock, the industry leader in identity theft protection, has moved in this direction with their upgraded service, Command Center™.

How Identity Theft Services “Package” Protection

First and foremost, identity theft protection is a business. For the most part, comparable identity protection features are available to almost any company. However, every additional feature increases the cost of the protection. Services must balance a price sensitive public with features that are most effective.

Things like economies of scale and proprietary technology can give some companies an edge over others in product offerings but only you can decide if these features are something you’ll find value in. Most consumers have a natural aversion to buying features they never use.

Naturally these companies will create protection packages to serve the greatest amount of people. I’ve separated consumers into these three categories and hopefully you’ll fall into one of them. For each category, I’ll explain the concerns, my recommendation for protection and reasoning behind it. If you can’t place yourself into any of these categories, feel free to drop me a note in the comments section and I’ll try my best to give you an answer.

To compare more identity protection plans visit our one of a kind identity service comparison tool.

Best Identity Theft Protection: Family Plans

Best Identity Theft Protection: Credit Monitoring

Best Identity Theft Protection: Value