LifeLock Review - Best Identity Theft Protection

One of the biggest names in identity theft protection, LifeLock offers a variety of monitoring services to alert you if your information has been stolen.

When you read the news, it can seem as if there’s a new data breach every week, with consumers’ credit card numbers, Social Security numbers, and other personal data stolen by nefarious hackers.

These stories may cause you to think twice about shopping online or, at the very least, consider signing up for an identity theft protection service. One company that offers this service is LifeLock, which provides customers with credit monitoring and identity theft protection services.

This service monitors your credit and personal information profile, alerting you when it looks as if you’ve been the victim of identity theft. LifeLock can help you bounce back if you’ve been the victim of identity theft by providing reimbursement for up to $1 million in damages. However, they cannot fully prevent you from falling victim to hackers and identity thieves.

For those who want a more hands-off approach to monitoring their credit and personal information profiles, LifeLock can be an effective choice.

LifeLock Identity Theft Protection: What You Need to Know

LifeLock is one of the biggest names in identity theft protection. However, all their notoriety has come with the price of multiple claims of deceptive advertising.

They scan a trillion data points daily, alerting you whenever something unusual shows up on your report. This can include inquiries for your credit report, changes to your address with your financial institutions, and unusual activity on your financial accounts.

If LifeLock detects that there has been unusual activity, you can be reimbursed for any financial losses you may sustain, including money stolen from your accounts.

They offer three tiers of coverage - Standard, Advantage, and Ultimate Plus - so users can customize their monitoring plan to meet their needs and budgets. Each plan offers a different level of monitoring, protection, and restoration, with the Ultimate Plus providing the most comprehensive coverage.

How Does LifeLock Identity Theft Protection Work?

When you sign up for LifeLock, you give them access to your personal information. This includes your Social Security number, credit card accounts, and bank accounts.

They use this information to monitor your accounts - they check 1 trillion data points daily - for signs that someone may have stolen your identity or gained access to your financial accounts without your permission. The types of data they check and which of your accounts LifeLock monitors depends on the plan you choose, with the higher-tiered plan offering more comprehensive monitoring.

If LifeLock detects unusual activity on your account, they alert you to this activity. You then can take steps to help protect your information, such as freezing your credit card accounts, and a LifeLock representative can guide you through the process.

Sometimes, funds are stolen from your accounts as part of identity theft. LifeLock can reimburse you for up to $1 million of loss, depending on your plan, so you’re not out a large sum of money as well as being the victim of fraud.

LifeLock customers choose a monthly plan for protection, and you can receive a discount if you elect to pay for an entire year of monitoring up front.

Where Is LifeLock Identity Theft Protection Available?

LifeLock is available to customers in all 50 states.

How Much Does LifeLock Cost?

The cost for LifeLock depends on which plan you select, as well as whether you decide to pay monthly or annually.

LifeLock offers three tiers of monitoring: Standard, Advantage, and Ultimate Plus. Plans range from $98.90 to $296.90 per person, per year. An 8 percent discount is given for those who choose to pay annually. Child plans are available as well.

The relatively high cost of LifeLock makes it suited more to covering individuals instead of families, as the costs do add up with every person added to monitor.

What Does LifeLock Identity Theft Monitoring Cover?

Depending on which plan you choose, LifeLock can monitor a variety of different factors for identity theft.

Some of the things LifeLock monitors include:

Credit Report Monitoring

If someone applies for a loan or credit card using your name and personal information, LifeLock alerts you to this change so you can verify whether it’s legitimate or fraudulent.

However, monitoring all three credit bureaus only is available with the highest-tier, most expensive LifeLock plan.

If you elect either the Standard or Advantage plans, LifeLock only monitors one credit reporting bureau. This means it still is possible for fraudulent transactions to slip through the other two bureaus, meaning you don’t get the full benefit of credit monitoring.

Dark Web Surveillance

There are massive underground networks on the “dark web” where criminals buy and sell the personal information of unsuspecting people. This can include your birthdate, Social Security number, account passwords, credit card number, and website usernames.

LifeLock can monitor the dark web for mentions of your personal information, alerting you if your information has been found there.

However, there isn’t always much you can do with finding out your personal information is for sale on the dark web, so this service may be more fancy-sounding than actually practical.

Lost Wallet Protection

If you lose your wallet, having someone to back you up sounds great at first. However, this service mostly just amounts to a LifeLock representative advising you to freeze your credit cards if you lose your wallet.

USPS Address Change Verification

In some cases, criminals can change your official address with your bank or other financial institution, and you may not find out until it’s too late.

To receive this monitoring, you need to provide LifeLock with all your banking user IDs and passwords.

Financial Account Activity Alerts

Receive alerts whenever a purchase is made on your credit cards, or a transaction is recorded on any of your bank accounts. If you see something that doesn’t seem right, you can react and report the fraudulent transaction.

With this service, you can view alerts on all your financial accounts in one place rather than multiple websites.

Like the address change verification service, you must provide LifeLock with the user IDs and passwords to all your financial accounts in order to use this service.

Reimbursement for Stolen Funds

If you are the victim of theft as the result of stolen information, LifeLock offers from $25,000 to $1 million in reimbursement for stolen funds, depending on your chosen plan.

However, this reimbursement is secondary to any protections your financial institution may have for stolen funds, meaning it’s unlikely you will actually receive any reimbursement from LifeLock in the event of a loss.

Alerts for Crimes Committed in Your Name

In the event that someone uses your personal information when arrested by the police, LifeLock’s identity restoration specialists can help you sort out the problem.

Data Breach Notifications

LifeLock notifies you if there is a reported data breach at any company, regardless of whether or not you do business with them.

With that information, you can decide if you need or want to take action, including freezing your accounts.

Court Records Scanning

With LifeLock’s Advantage and Ultimate Plus plans, they will scan court records for your name and birthdate. If they find any court records, they report that information to you.

While this service seems like a good idea, it’s very unlikely you will need it and it may not be worth the extra monthly fees just to receive it.

LifeLock Identity Theft Protection Features

• Founded in 2002
• Headquarters in Tempe, Arizona
• A- Better Business Bureau rating
• Multiple types of identity theft monitoring available
• Discount if you pay annually instead of monthly
• Offers court record monitoring and alerts if there are crimes committed in your name
• Financial account activity alerts allow you to see all your financial accounts in one place
• Between $25,000 and $1 million in reimbursement for lost funds

Pros and Cons of LifeLock Identity Theft Protection

Here are some of the pros and cons of choosing LifeLock for identity theft protection and credit monitoring:

Pros

• Quick and easy signup
• No qualifying or application - You choose your plan, pay, and receive service
• Three tiers of service available to fit all needs and budgets
• Rating of A- with the Better Business Bureau
• Wide-ranging monitoring and alerts
• Unique services, such as dark web monitoring, difficult to do on your own
• Can help you react quickly in case your information is stolen
• Discounts for paying annually

Cons

• Expensive, especially compared with other options
• Most valuable features, such as monitoring of all three credit bureaus, only available at the highest price point
• Don’t actually take any action to protect your identity; just notify you if your identity has been stolen
• Many consumer complaints for untruthful advertising
• Many features can be replicated for free or at a lower cost

Discounts on LifeLock Identity Theft Protection

LifeLock offers an 8 percent discount for customers who choose to pay annually instead of monthly.

Additionally, LifeLock frequently runs specials on their services, allowing customers to save up to 30 percent off the advertised monthly fees.

LifeLock Identity Theft Protection Customer Reviews

LifeLock has gotten a lot of press for some high-profile issues, including not taking enough steps to protect customer data.

Despite these issues, LifeLock has over 900 reviews on BestCompany.com, with an overall rating of 4 out of 5 stars.

One customer has used LifeLock for a few years and is pleased with the service.

_“We have been paying for this service for a couple of years and they are very reliable. They are fast to contact us with concerns and contact us to let us know that all is well.” - _Amy B.

Other reviewers point to the promptness of LifeLock’s notifications as a positive.

_“We have loved this company. They are very thorough, and we get notified promptly whenever there is a concern. Even if all is well they send us an email saying that.” _- Alyssa B.

_“I trust my protection with LifeLock. We used to have Norton but now they are one company giving me all the protection I need. I have identity protection as well as protection for my devices and when I am online I have privacy protection as well. I feel very safe with the Norton technology and with that antivirus software!” _- Kristin G.

However, not all reviews are positive, and many dissatisfied customers saying LifeLock is too expensive for the level of service they received.

_“Way too expensive for an ineffective service. My husband and I had about 5 id theft attempts in a year. Lifelock did not report One incident, but the banks/credit card companies did! Useless and overpriced. I signed up with Zander Insurance for a fraction of the price ($145/yr), and it includes my entire family, even minor children. Oh, and the credit card that was used for recurring billing was compromised too, and again Lifelock had no clue. Chase bank called me immediately and shut the card down.” _- Marie

_“I recently opened a home equity line of credit. Both Discover and Credit Karma sent alerts about a new account on my credit report. (Both services are free). Lifelock never sent an alert. I contacted LifeLock and ended up talking to someone overseas who read from a script. Every email I sent was met with boiler plate verbiage never addressing me personally. I finally cancelled the service as I lost trust that LifeLock has any ability to proactively protect their customers.” _- Dirk L.

How to Purchase LifeLock Identity Theft Protection

Purchasing LifeLock’s service is quick and easy online.

1. Visit www.lifelock.com.
2. Select your chosen plan and click “Get Started.”
3. You will be asked to provide information such as your name, birthdate, financial account information.
4. Enter your payment information and you’re ready to go.

How to Contact LifeLock

Address: 60 E. Rio Salado Parkway Suite 1000 Tempe, AZ 85281 Customer Service: (800) 416-0599 **Website: **www.lifelock.com **Twitter: **@NortonLifeLock Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lifelock/ **Instagram: **@nortonlifelock LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/companynorton/lifelock/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCa3h96az7881wsRH5uoTxuQ

Does LifeLock Offer Other Kinds of Services?

LifeLock only offers identity theft protection services, but it is partnered with Norton, which offers antivirus software.

Summary

Identity theft can happen in the blink of an eye, especially if you travel often or do a lot of purchasing online. Protecting your identity from thieves is essential to safely managing your online life, and failing to protect yourself can cost you jobs, money, and lots of time.

LifeLock is one of the biggest names in the identity theft protection industry. They monitor your personal information and alert you if they notice anything strange about the transactions they see on your reports.

However, LifeLock doesn’t proactively help you protect your personal information. Instead, they simply alert you if your identity has been stolen, helping you minimize the damage instead of avoiding it altogether.

It is one of the more expensive identity theft protection options, and many of the most valuable features only are available on the highest-tiered plans.

The idea behind LifeLock is great, but if you’re on a budget it may not be the best choice.