LifeLock 2024 Review

When hackers and thieves get their hands on enough of your personal information, they can easily open accounts in your name, take out payday loans or even file your tax return before you get a chance. There are steps you can take to prevent some types of fraud—like freezing your credit reports—but a thief who has your Social Security number, your birth date and other crucial information can still wreak havoc by stealing your identity right from under your nose.

Identity protection companies like LifeLock can help spot fraud early on, and their protective benefits can even stop it in its tracks in some cases. Most LifeLock plans also come with the added benefit of Norton 360 antivirus software, which helps secure your public information on public internet networks with a secure VPN.

Lifelock offers several tiers of coverage to help protect your identity. These include LifeLock Select with Norton 360, LifeLock Advantage with Norton 360 and LifeLock Ultimate Plus with Norton 360. You can also choose a standard plan that comes without Norton 360 software, but since the price is the same as the LifeLock Select with Norton 360 option, there’s no reason to go without. After all, Norton 360 can be downloaded to your computer as well as other devices you have (i.e. your smartphone, tablets, etc.). Just keep in mind that the LifeLock Select with Norton 360 option renews at a higher plan price after the first year.

Here are the LifeLock plans you should consider signing up for:

LifeLock Select with Norton 360

The Select plan from LifeLock provides Social Security number and identity alerts, stolen wallet protection, dark web monitoring, data breach notifications, USPS address change notifications and more.

This plan comes with one bureau credit monitoring (Equifax). You’ll receive $25,000 in stolen funds reimbursement protection, up to $25,000 in personal expense compensation and up to $1 million in coverage for lawyers and experts you can utilize if you’re a victim of identity theft.

You’ll also receive the protection that comes with Norton 360 antivirus software for up to five devices. Further, you’ll even get a VPN for five devices, which can help protect your identity when you use your phone or computer on public wifi networks.

LifeLock Advantage with Norton 360

LifeLock Advantage with Norton 360 comes with more identity theft protection features for a higher price point. You’ll get all the inclusions of the two lower-tier plans including one bureau credit monitoring (Equifax), and you’ll also get bank account and credit card account activity alerts, antivirus software and a VPN for up to 10 devices, alerts on crimes committed in your name and fictitious identity monitoring.

This tier of coverage also comes with an annual credit report and credit score from Equifax, and you’ll get up to $100,000 in stolen funds reimbursement coverage, up to $100,000 in personal expense compensation and up to $1 million in coverage for lawyers and identity theft experts if you become a victim of identity theft.

LifeLock Ultimate Plus with Norton 360

The top tier plan from LifeLock is the most comprehensive by far. LifeLock Ultimate Plus with Norton 360 comes with all the benefits of the lower tier plans plus monitoring of all three credit bureaus, a VPN for an unlimited number of devices, annual credit reports and scores from all three credit bureaus, 401(k) and investment account activity alerts, phone takeover monitoring and home title monitoring.

You also get up to $1 million in stolen funds reimbursement coverage, up to $1 million in personal expense compensation and up to $1 million in coverage for lawyers and identity theft experts if you become a victim of identity theft.

If you have substantial assets to protect the LifeLock Ultimate Plus plan is the best option out there. With higher levels of identity theft coverage, monitoring of all three credit bureaus, and 401(k) and investment account activity alerts, you’ll gain a lot more peace of mind.

More Details About LifeLock Plans

Note that none of the plans from LifeLock let you add your children, which makes this provider unique among its competitors. You can purchase LifeLock Junior for an additional cost for dependents under the age of 18, but you have to purchase an adult plan first.

Also important to consider: While the plans may have similar pricing for the first year, the annual renewal prices are widely different, costing up to $200 per year more for the highest tier plan than the lowest.

Still, LifeLock does offer the best money-back guarantee in the business on all of its plans. You have 60 days to try them out and decide if the plan cost is worth it, so you have nothing to lose.

Identity theft protection plans aim to save you time and energy while protecting you from fraud. When you purchase one of these plans, you can easily save yourself hours of time you would normally need to spend overseeing your accounts several times per month. Further, LifeLock works on your behalf 24 hours a day, so you’re considerably less likely to fall victim to identity fraud while your plan is in force.

Before you purchase a plan from LifeLock, you should consider which of the following features most suits your goals. That way, you can choose the amount of protection you need without overpaying for features that you don’t. Some areas to think about include:

• Computer software to protect your devices. Antivirus software such as Norton 360 can help guard your information when you use a public wifi network. Use this software to provide a layer of protection that can prevent hackers and thieves from accessing your online accounts.
• Monitoring the dark web for your information. Personal information is often bought and sold on the dark web, so you want a plan that monitors the underbelly of the internet to check for your personal details. If your private information is found, this can help alert you to potential fraud early on.
• Sign up for a plan that monitors all three credit bureaus. LifeLock Ultimate Plus is the only plan that monitors your credit reports from all three credit bureaus, which is crucial when it comes to finding accounts opened in your name.
• Rely on identity theft insurance coverage. Finally, purchase a plan that includes an ample amount of identity theft insurance coverage. This protection can reimburse you for out-of-pocket expenses caused by identity theft and fraud.

All LifeLock plans come with a standard roster of protective benefits, yet some of them stand out. Here are some of the identity theft protection perks you should know about before you purchase a plan from LifeLock.

• USPS address change monitoring: Will alert you if a fraudster tries to change your address with the United States Postal Service
• LifeLock Privacy Monitor: Lets you know if LifeLock has found your personal information on many common people search websites and data aggregators and shows you how to request removal
• Data breach notifications: Lets you know about large-scale data breaches, so you can help protect your personal information
• Stolen wallet protection: Helps replace your credit cards and personal identification when your wallet is lost or stolen
• Fictitious identity monitoring: Helps you uncover instances of synthetic identity fraud that may include all or part of your sensitive data or any accounts tied to your Social Security number

LifeLock offers a 60-day money-back guarantee when you pay for an annual membership. However, you must agree to uninstall and delete all copies of Norton 360 software included in your plan from your device(s) in the event of cancellation.

Also be aware that you cannot add children to a LifeLock identity theft protection plan without an additional cost. LifeLock Junior plans for children under the age of 18 cannot be purchased without buying an adult plan first.

How LifeLock Stacks Up

	Identity Guard	LifeLock	IdentityForce
Plan Costs	$7.50 to $25.00 per month for individuals	$9.99 to $29.99 per month for individuals for the first year	$9.99 to $19.99 per month for individuals
Identity Theft Insurance	Up to $1 million	Up to $1 million	Up to $1 million
Credit Monitoring	Only with Total and Ultra plans	At least 1 bureau monitoring comes with all plans	Only with UltraSecure+ Credit plan

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There are a few areas where LifeLock stands out among its competitors, but there are also some areas where its products are lacking. LifeLock has one of the best money-back guarantees that we have found in the business, with a full 60 days to try their annual plans before you commit to an entire year of service. LifeLock also stands out since all of their plans come with credit monitoring of your Equifax credit report, whereas IdentityForce does not include any credit monitoring in their basic “UltraSecure” identity theft protection plan.

LifeLock also comes with the added benefit of Norton 360 antivirus software with most of their plans, which can be immensely helpful if you want additional protection for all of your devices. However, Identity Guard plans start at a lower price point and even their highest tier plan is less expensive per month. All Identity Guard plans also come with up to $1 million in broad identity theft insurance, whereas the basic LifeLock plan separates out its coverage with only $25,000 in reimbursement for stolen funds, $25,000 in personal expense compensation coverage and up to $1 million in coverage for lawyers and experts.

IdentityForce, on the other hand, offers a very attractive identity protection and credit monitoring plan called “UltraSecure + Credit”. This plan includes all the identity theft protection benefits you would expect plus monitoring of credit reports and scores from all three credit bureaus.

There are plenty of identity theft protection plans available today, and it might help for you to compare several providers to see which one might work best for your needs and your budget. LifeLock is certainly a good choice, and that’s especially true if you want Norton 360 antivirus software and access to a VPN that can protect your personal information when you’re online.

Just keep in mind that LifeLock plans don’t include a specific number of children like some other plans do, and that paying an additional fee per month, per child could add up quickly if you have a large family. Also be sure to do the math after year one in order to avoid a nasty surprise on month 13.