Equifax’s ID Watchdog provides top-tier identity theft protection and resolution services to the benefit marketplace. Their proprietary technology services searches billions of data points to detect changes in the personal identity profiles of each member. ID Watchdog’s comprehensive monitoring, prompt alert notifications, and concierge-level identity resolution proactively detects identity theft problems at their source and provides immediate resolution services to ensure complete peace of mind. With the support of industry experts, federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, national consumer advocacy groups, and consumer protection agencies, ID Watchdog is committed to offering the industry world-class security.

We are excited to announce ID Watchdog as our Partner of the Week, where we highlight one of our unique PlanSource Marketplace Partners and the value they bring to the benefits industry. We recently sat down to discuss their unique employee benefits and how they support identity theft protection within the benefits industry. 

The power of Equifax allows ID Watchdog Identity Theft Protection to offer features not available to other benefits providers. As a data and analytics company, we leverage our unique data assets and partnerships to do more than just monitor for identity theft. We protect employees and their families from identity fraud by giving them greater control over personal and financial data. We take great care of them with unparalleled support to deliver peace of mind.

First-rate identity theft protection can help better protect and monitor employee identities and provide them peace of mind knowing that they don’t have to face the threat of identity theft and fraud alone. In addition to helping employees, there are several employer benefits to top-quality identity protection:

• Medical expense savings – Identity theft and fraud leads to increased financial stress for employees and potentially higher medical claims and medical costs. Greater identity security can reduce these stresses and claims.
• Higher employee productivity – When employees experience identity fraud, there is a tendency to resolve identity theft issues while “on the clock” – since most customer service teams are only available during normal business hours. Enhanced identity protection can help avoid this loss of productivity. Identity fraud is a distraction for employees.
• Talent attraction and retention – Identity theft protection is a top requested voluntary benefit. A more comprehensive benefits program that includes identity protection can help retain and attract top talent.

If the plan is 100% employee-funded and run through PlanSource, not only can the above advantages be realized, but employees will have access to more comprehensive programs at a volume discount.

We have led the industry with a number of innovations. Recently, we have focused on Family Protection. While adults may be targeted by identity thieves for the money in their accounts, a child represents an entirely different type of opportunity–a clean slate for opening new lines of credit that may go unnoticed for years. We have many features to protect against these threats including loan blocks, credit locks and monitoring. We also have several solutions to protect families from cyber threats including social media account monitoring, malware/virus and VPN. With ID Watchdog, employees have an easy and affordable way to help better protect the identities of the entire family.

To learn more about ID Watchdog and see examples of unique benefit providers out there, check out the PlanSource Partner Marketplace.