Reputation:  

Identity Guard’s provider, Intersections, is a satisfactory business in the eyes of the Better Business Bureau and has been in business for 10 years, a long time for an identity protection agency. They also boast the highest customer satisfaction and consumer review rating with a high satisfaction score of 91%. With over 8 million subscribing customers, they have become a name you can trust with your identity.

Security:  

Identity Guard boasts total protection for you wherever you go, covering your bases with credit, internet, computer, and on-the-go protection.

They don’t apply fraud alerts to your account, but have daily online monitoring to help detect online predators. They provide daily surveillance of known black market sites on the internet where your social security number, credit cards and bank account numbers may be traded or sold. They also monitor for changes in public databases that house your information.

They allow you to use a credit freeze, or utilize a concealed phone number or voice verification.  They do offer stolen wallet recovery assistance. This stand-out service feature is perfect for if you ever have your wallet stolen or lose it. A simple phone call to them will help cancel your credit card accounts as well as give you access to up to $2,000 in emergency cash.

Recovery Assistance:  

While they focus on protecting over resolving, Identity Guard does offer some hefty theft recovery assistance if you should need it. Dedicated recovery assistants are ready to help you through the process of recovery. And while they don’t offer the traditional $1 million guarantee on their service, they do issue actual insurance to the tune of $1 million. This insurance is available after you pay a $250 deductable, underwritten by Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America.

They also provide lost wallet protection. If you lose your wallet, they will help you cancel your accounts and give you access to up to $2,000 emergency cash if you need it. This stand-out feature would come in handy if you ever lost your wallet and were in a bind.

Additional Features:  

Identity Guard gives you a quarterly credit history report and credit score from Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. This is much nicer than the yearly report offered from other services, as you can monitor your credit score from all credit bureaus and do so more often.

A few other additional features are not available through them. They do not remove your name from mail lists, nor do they place your name on the Do Not Call Registry, though you can do these two things yourself. They don't have a family plan available or offer special coverage for children.

Help/Support:  

Identity Guard is there for you when you need them, offering customer support and assistance online or by phone. Although they do not offer full 24 hour live availability, their live customer service phone lines are open longer than most, 15 hours each weekday and even 9 hours on Saturdays.

Information Protected:  

Identity Guard offers to protect all of your traditional identifying information, including your full name, phone number, social security number, address and credit card information. They will also help protect your identifying information found on loan and lease applications and public records.

Identity Guard is a first-class identity theft protection service, but could use some additional features. We would like to see some sort of family coverage option. While Identity Guard does cost more than other services we reviewed, it is still a good value for identity theft protection alone, not to mention that it is a tremendous value considering the additional internet security they provide for free for as long as you remain a subscribing member. A big selling point for Identity Guard is their superior customer satisfaction and great company reputation.  And while no company can guarantee your identity protection, Identity Guard alleviates worry knowing your identity is in the hands of a reputable company with a very successful track record. If you are looking for a full-featured identity theft protection solution with proven performance, Identity Guard is a great option.