I already have credit monitoring. Why do I need more identity theft protection?

Experian, Equifax, TransUnion – your bank, your employer – all may offer free credit monitoring. With a major data breach hitting the news every week, that should be a comforting thought to all of us. But, the reality is monitoring is just a small step you can take to protect your identity.
​
A monitoring service can tell you if your credit is being misused, but what about your medical or genetic data? What about your tax return and social security number? Today, hackers are invading in our lives as never before, using personal data to undermine our financial security.

"LAST YEAR, 14.4 MILLION people were victims of identity fraud, according to the 2019 Identity Fraud Study from research and advisory firm Javelin. Nearly a quarter of victims had unreimbursed personal expenses related to the fraud, and the median loss was $375 among cases reported to the Federal Trade Commission.” US News & World Report, July 8, 2019

Slowly, we are getting better at checking our bank and credit card accounts, but the statistics suggest that an identity is stolen every 2 seconds in the U.S. A credit monitoring service may be able to tell your accounts have been hacked, but what can they do about it? You may find yourself in a situation where you have to prove that you are who you say you are. It can be a frustrating and even scary period of time.That’s where identity theft restoration services begin – and provide priceless value.

There are a series of steps that need to happen when you think your identity is stolen:

1. You need to assess the source of the breach and the damage
2. You need to freeze your credit and notify appropriate agencies
3. You need to contact creditors and dispute fraudulent charges
4. You may need to prove you are who you say you are…easier said than done in some cases.

It is estimated that these tasks can take up to 200 hours over 6 months to complete. They may require countless inquiries and constant vigilance.

Identity theft restoration services do the work for you. Offering professional advice and services to reestablish your financial identity and provide compensation for damages. Some programs, like ID Theft Assist, provide up to $1,000,000 of cash and expense reimbursement for losses.

What is your financial identity worth to you and your family? A couple of lattes a month? Two Netflix rentals? When you consider the alternatives, can you afford not to have identity theft restoration services?
Tomorrow your wallet or phone could be stolen. Your online account could be hacked. Some nefarious person could buy your Social Security Number. Are you prepared?

Invest in identity theft assistance services before you are a victim. According to statistics, it’s only a matter of time.