Experian IdentityWorks Review: Is It Worth It?

Experian IdentityWorks does the heavy lifting to keep your sensitive details out of the hands of scammers —and it helps to mitigate the negative consequences if someone manages to get ahold of your information. It monitors the internet for your data, alerts you when it finds an issue and even proactively helps you to handle it.

It's an identity protection tool similar to the best identity theft protection programs you've probably heard of. From perks like a free FICO credit score, dark web surveillance, identity theft insurance and myriad automatic alerts, it's one of the better credit monitoring services out there.

Our Experian IdentityWorks review will help you decide whether the tool is right for your identity protection needs — or if you should look elsewhere.

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Key Takeaways

• Experian IdentityWorks offers comprehensive identity protection through monthly privacy scans, credit locking, dark web surveillance and three-bureau credit monitoring. You get real-time fraud alerts, Social Security number tracing and monitoring across financial accounts, court records and social networks.

• Plans range from a free Basic tier to a Premium plan at $24.99 per month and a family plan at $34.99 per month covering two adults and up to 10 children. Premium tiers include up to $1 million in identity theft insurance and fraud resolution support.

• Choose IdentityWorks if you want solid monitoring at a fair price — especially for larger families. Skip it if you need a VPN, antivirus tools or a dedicated mobile app, since competitors like Aura and LifeLock offer those extras.

How Experian IdentityWorks Works

The method Experian IdentityWorks uses to protect your identity is simple. The many components it deploys to do it is impressively complex.

In short, IdentityWorks safeguards your identity in a few ways:

• Privacy scans: The service makes monthly scans of people finder sites to remove your information.

• Credit lock: You can instantly lock your Experian credit file with a tap of your phone.

• Account monitoring measures and alerts: From finances to court records to Social Security number monitoring, IdentityWorks lifts every rock and sweeps every corner to keep your identity secure with alerts and surveillance.

It also tracks changes that occur across all three major credit bureaus. This will help you sniff out foul play if and/or when it occurs.

IdentityWorks has some of the best identity monitoring, dark web surveillance, and alerts to help you stay protected and prevent identity theft.

Cost: $24.99 per month

Free Trial Available: Yes

Features: Credit monitoring, monthly privacy scans, credit locking, SSN monitoring, dark web surveillance, three-bureau credit monitoring, financial account monitoring and more

Pros

• Solid credit monitoring features

• Real-time fraud alerts

• Family protection options

Cons

• Most expensive plan isn't cheap

• Potentially difficult to cancel

Why We Like It

If you're worried about aspect of your identity, from accidentally revealing sensitive information on social media to losing your wallet at the gas station, Experian IdentityWorks can assuage your fears. It's a thorough offering of security measures that take the hard work out of keeping yourself safe.

Identity Protection Features

Experian IdentityWorks has virtually all the features offered by competitors — and more. The benefits you'll get depends on the tier you opt for.

The Basic identity protection plan is free and comes with:

• Credit score and monitoring alerts — Experian only

• FICO score tracker and score monitoring

• Experian credit monitoring and alerts

• Dark web surveillance report

• Personal privacy scan

The Premium identity protection plan costs $24.99 per month. It comes with all the perks of the Basic plan plus helpful advantages like:

• 3-bureau credit report check and FICO® Scores each quarter

• Assistance removing personal details from select people finder sites

• 3-bureau credit monitoring and alerts

• Dark web alerts

• Up to $1 million in identity theft insurance

• Fraud resolution support

• Lost wallet assistance

You'll also get alerts, including for financial account takeovers, Social Security number traces, change of address, court records and bookings, sex offender registry, social network monitoring, identity validation, and more.

The top IdentityWorks tier is a family plan costing $34.99 per month. It comes with all the bells and whistles of Premium but for one additional adult — and identity monitoring for up to 10 children.

Experian Identity Protection Features

Experian IdentityWorks leaves little to chance, as it both guards your information and helps you recover if your identity is stolen.

Pros

• Monitors several things competitors don't

• Fraud resolution support

• Decent insurance

Cons

• No VPN or antivirus software

• No dedicated app

Why We Like It

If you're worried about aspect of your identity, from accidentally revealing sensitive information on social media to losing your wallet at the gas station, Experian IdentityWorks can assuage your fears. It's a thorough offering of security measures that take the hard work out of keeping yourself safe.

User Experience

Experian IdentityWorks doesn't offer its own platform or mobile app. Instead, it lives within the Experian ecosystem. You can access its features by logging into your Experian account and navigating to the Identity Theft and Fraud section of your account. Or, you can go directly to the identity protection page and login from there.

In terms of user feedback, Experian itself receives an average of 4.1 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot. Users on various forums report successful fraud alerts that helped them avoid bigger problems down the road.

Others report the advertised help in removing sensitive information from public websites to be unimpressive and not worth the money. As ever, your experience will vary -- but the fact that Experian is largely viewed as positive is positive reinforcement for IdentityWorks.

Experian IdentityWorks vs. Competitor Options

Experian IdentityWorks vs. LifeLock

LifeLock works similarly to Experian IdentityWorks in that they both provide common features like social media monitoring, dark web monitoring and credit monitoring. However, LifeLock comes with some extras like phone takeover monitoring and better insurance coverage.

Experian IdentityWorks vs. Aura

Aura offers a wide selection of plan options that allow you to best customize coverage for your family situation. It too comes with a few features you won't find with Experian IdentityWorks, such as VPN, spam and call messaging protection, and something called "Vault" which stores your passwords and sensitive files -- while making them easy to share with those you trust.

Experian IdentityWorks vs. IdentityForce

IdentityForce by TransUnion is a very customized identity monitoring service that offers perks like a personalized identity safety score, a personalized action plan to keep you safe and a dedicated restoration specialist if you need it. It lacks a few features that IdentityWorks offers, and it's also expensive.

Final Take

Experian IdentityWorks is best for those who want comprehensive monitoring alerts at a reasonable price. True, it doesn't have the features of more expensive programs, but its price point over delivers for what you get. It's especially handy for large families, as its family plan allows for two adults and up to 10 children.

FAQs

How does Experian IdentityWorks work?

Experian IdentityWorks monitors many aspects of your life that have proven susceptible to scammers, including your social media, people finder sites, the dark web, and more. It works to remove sensitive information and will also assist you if your identity is compromised.

Is Experian IdentityWorks safe to use?

Experian IdentityWorks is safe to use. By signing up, you're entrusting your data to Experian, which takes measures such as secure web servers, encrypted connections and a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) to keep your info private.

Does Experian IdentityWorks include family protection plans?

Experian IdentityWorks includes one family protection plan which covers two adults and up to 10 children.

What features are included in Experian IdentityWorks plans?

Features you can expect in Experian IdentityWorks plans include advanced monitoring for identity theft, three-bureau credit monitoring and alerts, dark web internet surveillance alerts, Social Security number trace alerts, social network monitoring alerts, change of address alerts, identity validation alerts and much more.

Is Experian IdentityWorks worth the cost?

Whether Experian IdentityWorks is worth the cost depends on your needs. Most plans aren't cheap -- but for the suite of perks you get, it's competitive with other services. Remember, the base credit monitoring plan is free.

How quickly does Experian IdentityWorks detect and alert users to threats?

Experian states that alerts are sent to you in real time. In other words, as soon as Experian detects suspicious behavior, you'll know about it. Whether Experian detects that suspicious behavior immediately is hard to say.

Key Terms

• Identity monitoring service: A service that watches your personal information across credit applications, public records and websites for unusual activity that may signal identity theft.

• Credit monitoring service: A service that tracks your credit reports and alerts you to changes, which can help you spot possible fraud fast.

• Security freeze: A security freeze limits access to your credit report and usually stops new credit accounts from being opened in your name.

• Fraud alert: A fraud alert tells lenders to verify your identity before opening new credit in your name.

• FICO score: A FICO score is a credit score lenders use to estimate how likely you are to repay borrowed money.

Sources:

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: What is identity monitoring or identity theft service?

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: What is a credit monitoring service?

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: What is a security freeze?

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: What is a FICO score?

Editorial Note: This content is not provided by any entity covered in this article. Any opinions, analyses, reviews, ratings or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author alone and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any entity named in this article.

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