Identity Theft Protection At The Next Level: Do Not Get A Monitoring Service

The worldwide proliferation of identity theft is an on-going problem that gets more worrisome daily. Identity thieves are shrewd and cunning. No longer is it possible to surf the Internet or do much of anything online without prying eyes at the ready to steal your money, your identity and your life from you in a matter of minutes. Years ago, before the arrival of advanced technology that has become a part of our everyday life, identity protection was not talked about, heard about nor was it even a concern. In today's modern world, every person stands a one in three chance of being victimized by this hideous crime. With all the choices of ID theft service currently available, choosing the right service can be a daunting task, especially when trying to understand all the options available.

A leading misconception among consumers is that all identity theft protection services are the same. This simply is not the case. Competition is stiff among these providers an d a few of them rank very high in the area of ID protection. Instead of taking a chance on a company without understanding which services are essential, learning what these services actually entail will help immensely in the final decision of which one to subscribe to. Taking the time now will certainly prevent disaster in the future. Only the best companies will put into service certain stopgap measures to ensure the most effective protection. Some of these include:

1. Freezing, or preventing access to credit reports and unfreezing or thawing the credit report file
2. Putting legal protection in place beforehand
3. Placing continuous fraud alerts on your credit report
4. Extending the fraud alerts
5. Telemarketer reduction program
6. Attorney representation
7. Former law enforcement resources
8. Scam alert
9. Identity theft insurance
10. Credit reports from all three agencies, three times per year
11 . Junk mail reduction

Moreover, along with the services mentioned which go above and beyond most that are currently available, remember that simply monitoring a credit report for fraudulent activity offers no help in the fight against ID theft. Once an identity thief has successfully broken into a credit file and stolen the information from it, it is obviously too late to stop it. On the other hand, preventing such an occurrence is what a dedicated and committed service provider will supply.

While ID theft protection helps protect your identity, there are many more areas that ID thieves are targeting, such as:

1. ID theft using medical records
2. Minors
3. Elderly persons
4. Fraudulent tax returns with stolen information
5. Recipients of fraudulent benefits
6. Criminals using your name and your information when arrested for a crime
7. Using your stolen information to secure employment
8. Util izing your stolen Social Security number to receive your benefits

As you can see, ID theft protection is absolutely essential in today's world. Stay clear of the plethora of companies who tell a convincing story about why monitoring credit reports are effective. Instead, search for only those that provide the services listed above. The best companies committed to preventing the onslaught of ID theft provide comprehensive services at affordable rates.