News Releases

The only leading breach notification provider[1] to make it easy for affected individuals to set and maintain fraud alerts, an effective measure in preventing new account fraud[2]

Austin, Texas, December 4, 2017 – AllClear ID, the leader in customer data breach notification and response, today announced a new product that makes it easy for customers to set and maintain fraud alerts from within their AllClear identity protection service. Fraud alerts are effective in preventing stolen Social Security numbers being used to apply for and open new accounts[2], and they provide protection across the three national credit bureaus.

In 2016, the State of California recommended that breached organizations encourage notice recipients to place a fraud alert when Social Security numbers and Drivers’ licenses are compromised[2]. This guidance takes on even more urgency in the wake of Equifax’s breach. AllClear ID is the only leading breach notification and response provider[1] to offer fraud alert protection to individuals affected by data breaches.

Fraud alerts make it difficult for thieves to open new accounts by requiring creditors to take extra precautions to verify the identity of the applicant before opening the account. Federal law requires this extra security measure, and the best practice is for creditors to call the consumer to verify that they submitted the application. AllClear ID takes this one step further by combining fraud alerts with credit monitoring to help detect creditors that fail to comply.

“Individuals affected by data breach want prevention, not just monitoring.” said Bo Holland, Founder and CEO of AllClear ID. “Fraud alerts make it much harder for thieves to use stolen Social Security numbers to open fraudulent accounts without the hassle and extra fees associated with credit freezes.”

Research from AllClear ID quantifies the effectiveness of fraud alerts; in a 90-day period, 260,000 consumers placed fraud alerts on their credit files and AllClear ID processed 30,618 identity verification requests from creditors. In the final tally, consumers stopped 380 attempts of identity theft and zero fraudulent accounts were opened. Critically, creditor compliance with the fraud alert process exceeded 99%.

Features of AllClear Fraud Alerts with Credit Monitoring[1] include:

• Fraud alerts to help prevent stolen Social Security numbers being used to open new accounts
• Protection at the three national credit bureaus starting with the ability to request, renew, and remove a 90-day fraud alert through TransUnion. TransUnion will relay the request to set the fraud alert to Experian and Equifax, and AllClear will send a reminder email when it is time to reset the fraud alert.
• Credit Monitoring to help detect creditors that ignore the fraud alert law. Available with single or triple bureau option[3]
• Free annual copy of a TransUnion credit report for eligible customers. Customers can request additional credit reports by visiting annualcreditreport.com for free credit reports from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion
• Free annual copy of a TransUnion VantageScore® 3.0[2] for eligible customers.
• AllClear Identity Theft Monitoring to monitor for misuse of data using non-credit sources.
• Automatic access to AllClear Identity Repair should customers experience fraud, ChildScan Monitoring for those under 18, Lost Wallet Protection, and $1 Million in Identity Theft Insurance.

About AllClear ID

AllClear ID helps great brands protect their customers’ identities and is recognized as the clear market leader in customer breach notification and response services by Forrester Research. With more than 10 years of specialized experience in data breach response, AllClear ID has helped thousands of businesses prepare for, respond to, and recover from data breaches. The award-winning AllClear ID team is recognized for its expertise, customer service, and long history of industry first innovations.