Identity theft has become a multi-million dollar crime that affects many people throughout the world. While most people understand how serious this can be, many underestimate how common this problem is and don't realize that they could easily be one of the millions affected. As with all things in life, there is no guarantee that something bad can't happen to a good person but protecting yourself means that you must understand why you and your family need protection, how programs such as LifeLock work, and whether you really need to utilize a program like this at all. This article will explore the issue of identity theft and try to determine if the LifeLock program works.
While identity theft continues to grow as a crime of choice for many criminals, the exact statistics are hard to pinpoint due to the differing methods that identity thief's use. 2004 statistics stated that 9.3 million Americans suffered some sort of identity theft. Many identity theft criminals will abuse your personal information until your credit, good name, and social standings are completely destroyed. Even though federal law protects people from having to pay off bills due to fraud, the burden of proof it is up to the victim and clearing everything up after becoming a victim of identity theft can take, on average, 600 hours spread out over several years. To give you an idea of how this crime has escalated, this average of 600 hours is up from 170 hours from only a few years ago. If you become a victim of identity theft, your ability to purchase a home or car, get bank accounts and credit cards, and sometimes your ability to obtain gainful employment can be greatly hindered. While going through the process of restoring their life, an identity theft victim can also expect to spend around $1,500 in out of pocket expenses, not to mention the wage losses they may incur if they are required to take time off from work.
Anti-identity theft programs, such as LifeLock, specialize in preventing identity theft. LifeLock is said to stop junk mail, pre-approved credit card offers, and claims to takes a proactive stance to protect your identity by contacting you before your credit is tarnished. The LifeLock program promises to take steps so that your credit and personal identification is continuously monitored and that you will be notified whenever there is any suspicious activity with personal information. A negative aspect to this program is that you may find it difficult to secure credit yourself but LifeLock states that, if this happens, they will be available to speak with any creditor you are having difficulties with.
LifeLock makes some hard to believe claims so let's discuss how the program is supposed to work. The company states that they will contact the four major credit bureaus and submit a 90 day fraud alert in your name which means that nobody, including you, will be able to obtain credit without sending an alert. When someone sets up a fraud alert with a credit reporting agency, the alert will automatically expire in 90 days but LifeLock is said to automatically renew the alert before it expires so this protection is continuous. You will also be provided with a copy of your credit report four times a year but of course that is something you could do on your own anyway. If you fully understand the dangers of identity theft and realize that you could be a victim, you may well be wondering if you really need such a program.
In my opinion, LifeLock does not do anything that a person could not do by themselves if they were willing to invest the time and resources but the company claims that it offers a service of convenience and peace of mind. They also state that no contract is required and you can cancel at any time and that for an additional fee they can set up an account to protect your children as well. Protecting your children is said to be important because a child under 18 are sometimes a prime target for thieves because any suspicious activity with their Social Security number may not be caught until the child reaches the age of 18. LifeLock also claims that they will represent if the program fails and you actually do become a victim of identity theft.
If the thought of having your identity stolen concerns you, as it should, then you should take steps to reduce the probability of it happening. Whether you decide to take care of this on your own or obtain the service of an anti-identity theft program is up to you. There are numerous companies available that offer this service and it may be difficult to determine which one to choose. While LifeLock makes some fantastic claims and does admit that there is no guarantee that identity theft can't happen even with the best programs, reviews of the program do indicate that it has worked for some. Whatever you decide, please take some type of action to protect yourself because identity theft continues to grow and is indeed a huge problem that may very well affect you sometime in the future.
For more information on LifeLock and the crime of identity theft you can go to the LifeLock-Reviews website.
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