Why is it important to have identity theft protection?

Identity theft protection is designed to help people detect and respond to potential misuse of personal information. Depending on the service, identity protection may include identity monitoring, credit-related alerts, dark-web monitoring, recovery assistance, and insurance benefits.

The value is often not that the service can stop every theft. It is that earlier detection can reduce the time a criminal has to continue using stolen information.

The adage that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure applies to many scenarios, protecting against identity theft is no exception.

Losses from internet crime have steadily increased since 2018 (source: FBI Internet Crime Report 2022). This makes identity theft monitoring more crucial than ever. When hackers gain access to your personal data, the aftermath can lead to financial issues, legal worries, and many other unforeseen problems.

If your identity is stolen you could face difficulties with:

• Applying for loans

• Obtaining a mortgage

• Purchasing a new vehicle

• Getting a credit card

• Signing a lease

Someone stealing your identity can cause headaches in other areas of your life as well. Identity theft can affect your ability to get a job and can ruin your credit by allowing others to create debt in your name.

Other ways that scammers can use your identity include:

• Medical identity theft - someone receives medical care under your name

• Tax fraud - someone uses your SSN to take a job and file taxes under your name

• Governmental benefits fraud - someone uses your identity to receive government benefits

Another concern if your identity is stolen is if someone uses your identity to commit a crime. With the right information, someone could use your stolen information to get a driver’s license or other ID. If they present your identification to police while being arrested, you could face legal complications while trying to clear your name.

Someone stealing your identity and accumulating debt through new lines of credit can ruin your credit score or worse. Often restoring your identity can require legal intervention to fix the damage to your credit.

Legal fees associated with identity theft can mount quickly and could require hefty attorney’s retainers that may be difficult to cover when your credit and identity are compromised. Identity theft insurance can serve as a safeguard to help against high legal costs and other out-of-pocket expenses associated with identity fraud.

What is identity theft protection?

If you're asking what is identity theft protection, what is identity protection, what is ID protection, or what is ID theft protection, imagine someone uses your information to apply for a new credit account.

Without monitoring, you might not learn about the account until a bill or collection notice appears.

An identity-protection service may detect an inquiry or new account earlier and send an alert.

That does not guarantee the fraud will be prevented, but it can give you an opportunity to respond sooner.

Why is identity theft protection important?

Why is it important to have identity theft protection? Because identity misuse can occur in places people do not routinely check.

Most people do not review their credit reports every morning. They also may not constantly monitor underground breach data, address changes, or public records.

A monitoring service can automate some of that work.

For example, if a criminal attempts to use your information to open an account, an alert may prompt you to contact the institution before the problem grows.

Do you need identity theft protection?

Do you need identity theft protection depends on your circumstances.

Some people already receive credit monitoring through a bank or employer. Others may be comfortable checking their own reports, freezing their credit, and managing account alerts.

Paid services may be most useful for people who want broader monitoring or professional recovery assistance.

When comparing the best protection from identity theft, protection from ID theft, or protection against identity theft, ask what the service actually monitors and what happens after an alert.

How do you protect your identity?

If you're asking how to protect identity, protecting your identity, protect ID, or about personal info protection, monitoring should be combined with preventive habits.

Use unique passwords, enable multifactor authentication, freeze credit when appropriate, keep sensitive documents secure, and be skeptical of unexpected requests for information.

For example, identity monitoring cannot protect you if you voluntarily give a scammer the verification code needed to enter your bank account.

Protection works best in layers.

What is identity theft insurance, and why do I need it?

If your identity has been stolen, you could be in for a long legal battle to restore your accounts, good credit, and other private data. It can take months or even over a year to get your identity restored.

Depending on the severity of your identity theft case, you may require legal protection and assistance to resolve your claim.

Some identity theft scammers play the long game and will take out lines of credit in your name while having the billing statements sent to their address. They pay the monthly bill and open multiple accounts using this method. By the time you notice, the damage could already be done.

In some cases, this type of scam can go on for years undetected, making this a more costly and time-consuming situation to unravel.

If your identity theft case requires legal intervention, time missed from work, or substantial financial losses, having identity theft insurance can be a tremendous help.

Identity protection subscription plans like those offered by OmniWatch can help ease the financial burden if you find yourself in this unfortunate situation. Our dedicated restoration agents will also help you handle the process of identity restoration, which may decrease the time it takes you to recover from identity theft.

OmniWatch users are insured for up to $4 million in reimbursement for stolen funds, expenses incurred due to stolen identity or funds, and legal defense fees and expenses, exclusions and limitations apply. This feature can give you peace of mind knowing that if something does happen, legal fees and other expenses related to the claim are covered. OmniWatch identity theft insurance will reimburse funds stolen from any account, including foreign bank accounts, investment accounts, and more. Many insurance plans often only cover primary checking or savings account losses.

While having identity theft protection is one of the easiest ways to help protect yourself and your family from identity fraud, there are many other steps you can take to keep your identity secure.

Here are some of the ways that identity theft insurance and protection techniques can help you keep your identity safe.

How to protect against identity theft

Scammers and grifters have upped their game and are no longer just sending out mailers and making phone calls in attempts to access your personal information. In our highly tech-dependent world, it’s easier than ever for hackers to find and use personal data to commit crimes.

The old methods of staying safe online are becoming outdated as criminals are getting more savvy in how they acquire and use personal information.

Identity thieves are now targeting large companies, healthcare providers, government agencies, and other organizations to gain access to information. Even if you are diligent in protecting against identity theft, an identity thief can find your information through other sources.

Some of the best identity theft protection options to help keep your data secure are easy to set up and could make it more difficult for your identity to be stolen.

Monitor your credit alerts

Use a credit monitoring plan to know if there are changes to your credit.

Being aware of your credit can help you protect it. Maintaining good credit is easier if you track and monitor changes and inquiries to your account. With any OmniWatch plan, you’ll get alerts when anything changes on your TransUnion® credit report. Premium subscription plans get alerts for all three credit bureaus –TransUnion®, Experian®, and Equifax®.

Lock or freeze your credit with all 3 credit bureaus

Locking or freezing your credit with all bureaus will prevent any new lines of credit from being opened on your credit reports. The downside is you will need to remember to unlock your credit report if you need to open a new credit card or get a loan.

You can easily lock and unlock your TransUnion Credit Report right from OmniWatch. Simply toggle it on and off on the “credit” page. You can lock your Equifax report at no charge from their website by creating a free account here.

Experian charges you to lock your credit, but by law, they are required to allow you to “freeze” your credit. This is similar to locking your credit, but instead of being able to easily toggle it on or off, you have to authenticate your identity when you want to freeze or unfreeze your credit. You can freeze your credit with Experian here.

IRS PIN

You can create a unique PIN that the IRS will require to accept your tax return and change it every year. This step can help prevent someone from stealing your tax return. You can access this feature by clicking here.

Use an online identity theft protection service

Using online identity protection services like OmniWatch can help you stay informed and knowledgeable about your online identity and potential data theft-related activities at institutions you’re associated with.

Online identity theft protection services that are available to OmniWatch subscribers include:

• Alerts and updates about breaches you may have been exposed in

• Dedicated restoration specialists to help you if your identity is stolen

• Up to $4 million in identity theft insurance coverage (exclusions and limitations apply)

• 24/7 live dedicated identity restoration customer support

• Credit protection monitoring of the three major credit bureaus

• Access to identity theft specialist advice

The best online identity theft protection

Some of the best ways to keep your online identity safe are all preventative measures. If you can stop identity thieves early on, the risks to your credit and identity are likely to be lowered. Continuous monitoring of your online identity through a service like OmniWatch and using free identity theft protection precautions can help ensure that you’re aware of changes to your credit or use of your online identity.

Knowing when someone has accessed your accounts helps you to catch changes quickly to minimize damages.

To learn more about OmniWatch and how it can help you and your family with online identity theft protection, go to OmniWatch.com.

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This guide is published by OmniWatch. Follow OmniWatch on Facebook for ongoing guidance on identity protection, digital safety, and scam awareness.