The Consumer Federation of America recently released a report that reviewed 20 of the major identity theft protection services that are available today. The review was a follow-up to a set of voluntary "best practices" guidelines that the CFA created last year, with the intention of this review being to see how well the services had improved in the year since those guidelines were released. Many of the services reviewed had done a "fair job" in complying with the guidelines according to the report, but there is still significant room for improvement within the industry.
According to the report, the biggest complaint that consumers have with identity theft protection services revolves around the "free trial" periods that many of these services offer. Some services don't make it immediately clear that billing will start automatically once the trial period is complete, and in many cases it was difficult and sometimes frustrating for customers to cancel their subscriptions before the trial period ended. Consumers have also reported a bit of sticker shock after the trail period ended due to the actual cost of the service being more than they were initially led to believe it would be.
This wasn't the only problem that the CFA reviews found, of course. The report outlines several of the most common deviations from its "best practices" guidelines, including:
• Misrepresentation or overhyping of the services that are provided, and the lack of specific details about coverage from some providers. This includes overpromising the protection that services provide, references to "free" credit reports and other products that aren't really free, and a general lack of details about the specific things covered by the service.
• Sloppy use of identity theft statistics that paint an unrealistic picture of identity theft rates and recovery time; in some cases the statistics used were significantly outdated even though there were more recent statistics available.
• Lack of information about identity theft recovery assistance, including whether the services actually take an active role in the recovery process or if they just give information to the customer. Even when they do take an active role there was very little information available as to what specifically the services did to assist.
• Too much emphasis on insurance programs without specific details. Despite the CFA's opinion that identity theft insurance is of little value due to low payouts and coverage of legal services that aren't often needed, many consumers like the thought of having identity theft insurance. While information on the insurance programs was relatively easy to find, specific details about coverage amounts was not.
The CFA report included an overview of the "best practices" guidelines and suggestions as to how identity theft protection service providers can improve their existing services to better coincide with the CFA recommendations. Those of you who wish to read the report, including specific breakdowns of the performance of each company that was reviewed, can find the report in its entirety at the CFA website.
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It's very sad to note that identity theft is the fastest rising crime today. According to FTC, it is the number one consumer complaint and holds the spot for 12 years in a row now.
In addition to theft via credit cards, the government has lost billions of money through fraudulent tax refunds.
Best regards,
Belinda
It's too bad that the system cannot protect itself. The government and business community wants to use the internet for all these transactions and this ID theft is simply becoming another "business opportunity" to sell some product and service, similar to the Swiss cheese Microsoft firewall that created a huge software virus industry. No one even checks to see who is actually releasing the viruses. In the 1800's when business depended on the horse for banking and communications, it was recognized and horse thieves were hanged. People today keep touting about the wonders of the internet; but when if your running a theft risk every time you sign on, there is a real impact on business. Everybody should get serious about this, and develop ways to track, catch and incarcerate these predator bottom feeders.
We agree!! The sign-up processes are very deceptive. It is rather ironic that they are meant to be consumer watchdogs, but they themselves are a bit shaky.
Identity Force's sign-up process is VERY DECEPTIVE: THEY DO NOT TELL YOU THAT THE FAMILY PROGRAM REQUIRES ADDITIONAL FEES FOR EACH FAMILY MEMBER.
After researching the performance of several identity theft programs online, I then called several companies. I chose Identity Force based on the reviews, but also the additional service on insurance. When asking customer service in advance for information, I asked if they offered a "Family Service Plan", which I also found when I went to their website to sign-up (link removed)
The sign-up process included asking for my information, followed by asking for my wife's information and then asked for a payment. It was not until after I had been charged and a few days later that I noticed my wife's information was not in the system. I then selected the option to add a family member and it wanted another $200.
The sign-up process is VERY DECEPTIVE. It implies that the fee includes your spouse. I cancelled the service. If your intention is to have all your family members covered, than expect to pay double the listed fee.
I understand your frustration. Though you mentioned issues you had with one company, to be fair, I have heard a number of similar complaints about an array of other companies too. Unfortunately, I think they forget that consumers just want and need: simple security. It's bad enough that when doing the necessary homework to make an informed decision, consumers first have to sift through the pages of paid ads and biased review pages while looking for information about any product or service their interested in purchasing. It's time- consuming and frustrating. If the site has conflicting info --or is at all complex --many consumers continue to relay ---they simply quit. They move on. They and don't end up buying anything at all. No trust = No purchase! Online businesses need to better differentiate between communicating with potential consumers --and confusing them.
My suggestion? I would get in touch with someone at the company who might care about what you experienced with their sign-up process. Let them know what tripped you up --and why you ultimately cancelled your account. I've found that some company execs want to be alerted to potential problems with their service or customer service. It's whether or not they address the underlying problems --and take steps to correct/better clarify any potentially misleading information, that's telling.
Thanks for sharing Tom.
Denise