In 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) received more than 1 million reports of identity theft, and it's only expecting more.
For those unsure of how to reduce the risk of identity theft, IDX Identity can help.
The company offers preventive measures to lower the risk of having your identity stolen and expert-managed recovery services to guide and shield you if your personal information is compromised.
Business Insider's personal finance team compared IDX identity theft protection to the best identity theft protection services and found it to be a standard offering with standard features. Read on to see if IDX Theft Protection is right for you.
IDX Overview
Founded in 2003, IDX calls itself America's leading provider of breach response services. The company claims to have protected over 40 million consumers from data breaches, government agencies, and Fortune 500 companies. Headquartered in Beaverton, Oregon, IDX is a subsidiary of Baltimore-based, publicly traded cyber security company ZeroFox.
IDX and its services have previously gone by many names, including ID Experts, Identity Theft Guard Solutions, and MyIDCare.
$9.95 monthly or $107.52 annually
- Identity recovery money-back guarantee
- Family plans available
- Annual discount
- Single-bureau monitoring only
- No protection features
- Middling customer reviews
Compare IDX Identity Theft
How IDX Works
IDX offers three different levels of protection at varying price points:
IDX Identity
Cost: $9.95 monthly or $107.52 annually
As the name implies, IDX Identity is the company's identity theft protection plan. It provides an array of monitoring tools to alert you of unusual or suspicious activity, recovery benefits to support you if your data is compromised, and insights to help you safeguard personal information. All of the following features are included in an IDX Identity plan:
- Password detective
- CyberScan dark web monitoring
- Single-bureau credit monitoring
- Annual single-bureau credit report
- Court record monitoring
- Payday loan monitoring
- Change of address monitoring
- Social Security number trace
- Identity recovery
- Lost wallet coverage
- $1 million identity theft insurance
- 100% identity recovery money-back guarantee
- Actionable alerts
- Unlimited advice from recovery experts
- Fraud and protection how-to guides
IDX Privacy
Cost: $12.95 monthly or $132.92 annually
While IDX Identity focuses on monitoring your identity, IDX Privacy's services offer preventive measures against identity theft, deprioritizing monitoring services. IDX Privacy's features are as follows:
- ForgetMe data removal
- Password manager
- Safe WiFi VPN
- Private search
- Tracking blocker
- Password detective
- Dark web monitoring
- Social media and fraud protection
- Identity recovery
- Lost wallet coverage
- $1 million identity theft insurance
- Privacy score
- Actionable alerts
- Unlimited advice from recovery experts
- Fraud and protection how-to guides
IDX Complete
Cost: $32.90 monthly or $355.32 annually
IDX Complete combines all features of IDX Identity and IDX Privacy. It also has a handful of unique features:
- Tri-bureau credit monitoring
- Annual tri-bureau credit reports
- VantageScore 3.0 credit score
- Instant inquiry alerts
- TransUnion credit lock
Key Features of IDX
Let's unpack some of IDX's most prominent features.
Monitoring
IDX Identity has broad monitoring capabilities that include several essential features. CyberScan dark web surveillance searches proactively online, alerting you when your personal information is exposed in a data breach or when compromised personal information is detected. Court record monitoring notifies you when your name is linked to arrests or convictions, so you won't be caught off guard if your identity is fraudulently used in association with criminal activity.
One innovative feature of IDX Identity is the Password Detective, which scans for your passwords online to detect compromised accounts and help you change your login information before it can be used illicitly.
While most monitoring capabilities come from IDX Identity, IDX Privacy offers dark web monitoring, which scans the dark web to see if your personal information is exchanging hands.
While IDX does offer comprehensive credit monitoring in other plans, the Identity plan only offers monitoring from a single credit bureau. That leaves gaps in your coverage unless you supplement it with other credit monitoring services.
You can read our guide to the best credit monitoring services.
Recovery
If you become a victim of identity theft, any of IDX's plans can help you recoup losses and resolve problems that arise. Recovery begins with a dedicated U.S.-based fraud resolution representative who can act on your behalf (using limited power of attorney) to recover your identity to its original status before the theft occurred. You'll also get access to ID specialists who can help you cancel or replace the missing contents of a lost wallet.
IDX comes with identity theft insurance that can cover up to $1 million of expenses incurred throughout the recovery process. The policy covers out-of-pocket expenses such as legal fees, credit reports, and loan filing fees, as well as income lost due to identity theft. Finally, IDX backs up its recovery service by guaranteeing adverse effects of identity theft will be removed from your record, or you'll get a refund of up to one year of fees (terms apply).
Insights
To help prevent identity theft before it occurs, IDX offers a knowledge base with advice on how to protect yourself from fraud, as well as alerts of known data breaches and other current risks (even if your information is not known to have been compromised). Identity protection experts are also available to provide unlimited advice and help you take action as needed.
IDX Pros and Cons
IDX Pros
- Family plan available
- Money-back guarantee
- Alerts for suspicious activities on your accounts
IDX Cons
- Awkward personal data entry
- Poor customer reviews
- Can't prevent identity theft
IDX Costs and Fees
You can enroll in IDX as either an individual (with coverage for a single adult) or a family (with coverage for two adults and five minors). In either case, you can choose a monthly plan or get a 10% discount when you pay upfront for an annual membership.
Individual (monthly) | Family (monthly) | |
IDX Identity | $9.95 monthly or $107.52 annually | $19.95 |
IDX Privacy | $12.95 monthly or $132.92 annually | $25.95 |
IDX Complete | $32.90 monthly or $355.32 annually | $64.99 |
IDX doesn't offer a free trial publicly, but has been known to offer free trials and discounted memberships with an applicable discount code. These are typically available via targeted mailers sent to individuals who may have been impacted by data breaches.
Once you enroll, IDX will automatically continue your subscription using the payment method on file. You can cancel your IDX subscription anytime by contacting customer support at 800-939-4170 or emailproductsupport@idx.us. You won't be charged for the service once you cancel, but you won't receive a refund or credit for partial months. If you're enrolled in a free trial, you won't be charged if you cancel before it ends.
How to Enroll in IDX Identity Protection
You can enroll in IDX online. Once you click to enroll, you'll be prompted to set up an online account and verify your email address, after which you can select a service and billing plan by providing a valid credit card.
For IDX features to function effectively, you'll need to provide and verify sensitive personal data such as your Social Security number, date of birth, address, and more. You can request a full copy of your data from IDX or ask for your data to be deleted at any time.
IDX Reviews and Ratings
You must be 18 or older to use IDX in the US. IDX claims that 95% of its members would recommend the service to others. Online reviews indicate otherwise, with a Trustpilot rating of 2.2 stars out of 5 and a Better Business Bureau rating of 2.18 stars out of 5.
Its mobile apps also have middling reviews. Its Android app received 4.0 stars out of 5 across 297 reviews, while its iOS app received an average of 2.2 stars across 93 reviews. Customers reported difficulties logging into the app, receiving identity notifications, and resolving identity breaches.
IDX reviews and ratings have dropped recently due to customers being dissatisfied with their services after IDX was recommended by UnitedHealth Group as a credit monitoring service in response to a recent data breach experienced by Change Healthcare. Customers reported experiencing difficulty inputting their personal data and setting up the service, and receiving alerts to suspicious activity on their accounts.
IDX has been BBB accredited since 2004 and has an A+ rating.
IDX Alternatives
IDX has many must-have features we look for when rating identity theft protection services, including dedicated fraud resolution and recovery experts who can manage your case on your behalf and insurance coverage to mitigate costs associated with restoring your identity. IDX Identity also provides essential dark web and court record monitoring. However, the lower-tier plan only offers credit monitoring from a single credit bureau, whereas many competing services include credit monitoring from all three major credit bureaus.
One feature of IDX that stands out is its money-back guarantee, which refunds up to one year of fees if the service fails to remove all adverse matters posted to your record resulting from an identity theft event (provided you follow recommended procedures). IDX also gets credit for explicitly stating in its privacy policy that the company does not sell customer data to third parties — data may be shared with partners to satisfy service or legal requirements (like providing information to credit bureaus for credit monitoring).
Finally, IDX Complete's price is on par with most of the top identity theft protection services. However, each service provides a unique assortment of tools and features, so a price-based comparison doesn't tell the whole story. Let's compare IDX to some of the best identity theft protection services.
IDX vs. Norton 360 with LifeLock
Norton 360 with LifeLock Select pairs identity theft and cybersecurity services offered by Norton. It functions at three levels: Select, Advantage, and Ultimate Plus. When both services are operating at their best, Norton 360 with LifeLock outmuscles IDX Complete. Both offer similar identity and credit monitoring services, but Norton 360 with LifeLock has better cybersecurity features, including anti-malware and antivirus protection.
On paper, Norton 360 with LifeLock and IDX have very comparable prices. However, Norton offers better annual discounts, from 14% to 44% off the monthly price, depending on the plan.
Read our Norton LifeLock review.
IDX vs. Aura
Aura All-In-One is one of the best identity theft protection services on the market, including all its features under one plan that costs $15 monthly for individuals. With a full arsenal of monitoring and protection services, family plans, and annual discounts, Aura is the service to beat.
Unfortunately, IDX falls well short of the standard Aura sets. Despite costing more than twice as much as Aura, IDX Complete lacks key cybersecurity features that Aura offers, like antivirus software and a digital vault for storing sensitive documents.
Read our Aura review.
IDX vs. PrivacyGuard
PrivacyGuard's three plans are structured similarly to IDX: two separate plans that combine into one overarching plan. PrivacyGuard offers PrivacyGuard Identity Protection, PrivacyGuard Credit Protection, and PrivacyGuard Total Protection.
PrivacyGuard has wider monitoring options between its identity and credit protection plans. It offers monthly credit reports as opposed to IDX's annual reports. PrivacyGuard also provides a credit score simulator and financial calculators for customers to see how certain decisions will impact their finances and credit scores. Additionally, tri-bureau protection comes with PrivacyGuard's credit protection plan, while IDX reserves tri-bureau monitoring for its Complete plan.
PrivacyGuard Total Protection is also cheaper than IDX Complete, even after IDX's annual discount. However, PrivacyGuard does not have a family plan.
Read our PrivacyGuard review.
IDX FAQs
IDX Identity is an identity theft protection service offering monitoring, alerts, and fraud restoration.
IDX Identity employs advanced monitoring tools, alerts, and fraud restoration services to protect against identity theft, fraud, and scams.
IDX CyberScan is a monitoring tool that continually searches online (including the dark web) to check whether your personal information has been exposed. Detecting and addressing compromised information quickly reduces the likelihood of it being used illicitly.
Yes, IDX Identity allows users to cancel their subscription at any time without penalties by contacting customer support at 800-939-4170 or emailproductsupport@idx.us.
Yes, IDX is a legitimate identity-protection company. It has been accredited by the Better Business Bureau since 2004 and has an A+ rating.
Why You Should Trust Us: How We Reviewed IDX
Most identity theft services follow the same tiered pricing system, offering more features for more money. Because these companies also offer similar services for their premium service, we rate companies based on what they offer at what price point. Along the way, we note exceptional inclusions and exceptional exclusions. We pay particular attention to public records and dark web monitoring as those services are difficult to replicate on your own.
While this is our primary consideration when we rate identity theft protection companies, we also look at a company's Better Business Bureau rating to see how responsive it is to its customers. We consider aspects such as return policies and free trial offerings.
IDX doesn't offer much in exceptional features. In fact, the most notable aspect of IDX is its price, particularly for IDX Identity. With decent monitoring capabilities — notably only including single-bureau monitoring — IDX Identity isn't one of the more expensive options. On that note, IDX's discounts and family plans are nice features on top of its money-back guarantee if it fails to rectify damage from an identity theft event.
Read our full explanation of how we rate identity theft protection services.