Theft Protection Is Big Business!

When it comes to safety for sale, you should know there’s a fly in the buttermilk!

So many companies have jumped in the Identity Theft Protection market, that consumers almost need protection from the protection.

The problem with many Johnny come lately identity theft protection sellers is that the same institutions that contribute to the problem want to profit by selling a fix for the problem.

It's kind of like a chicken hawk protecting chickens!

For example: One reason ID theft is an issue is that financial services industries have fought laws (through expensive lobbyists that control congress) that would give you more control over how your personal information is used.

The same credit card issuers flooding mailboxes with junk mail (one cause of ID Theft) are also selling identity theft protection.

Open a credit card offer and you'll find a open line of credit that only has to be signed and returned. The fraud potential is obvious. Included with the credit offer is a handful of advertisements. Often identity theft protection is one of the adverts.

Adding insult to injury, the data industry lobby has fought state laws that allow you to slap a freeze on your report for a small fee. Although, as of fall 2006, ten states either had freeze laws or were working on them.

With a freeze, no potential lender can order your credit information unless you first contact the agencies and tell them to unlock your report. This is a good thing. You should write your congress person!

A freeze prevents unknown lenders and merchants from getting their hands on your credit history without your permission.

A freeze would also make it nearly impossible for someone else to borrow money in your name because no one can open the report but you.

Safety sold by Banks and Credit Card companies:

1. Insurance plans that reimburse you for some out-of-pocket expenses from theft
2. Credit monitoring services that alert you when certain new information about you pops up at one of the three major credit bureaus.

Other Identity Theft Sellers:

Beyond the basics, there's an amazing variety of identity theft protection being offered.

There's even an online service where you input your personal information (social security number) into a database that will search stolen ID. Even if the service is legit, is it wise to give personal information to yet another unknown company's computer database.

Adding to the confusion is the fact the credit bureaus peddle the same services through many sleight of hand web sites with misleading names like Freecreditreport.com (that's Experian), Freecreditprofile.com (that's TransUnion) or Free-credit-report-in-seconds.com (Experian again).