Do fraud alerts work?
As more and more people switch on to the fact that identity theft is a real problem in the UK and around the world there has been a significant increase in the sign up rates for fraud alerts. These are fraud monitoring programs which will alert you to any suspicious or substantial activity on your credit card or any loan applications, etc made in your name. While there's no doubt that fraud alerts can and have ensured that problems have been tackled very early, and saved substantial amounts of money, the truth is they can only happen after an event has taken place.
Even if you were alerted to potential fraudulent activity in your name the fact is that at least one application or spending spree will have happened before you can put a stop to it. This leaves you open to potentially substantial liabilities which can and have ruined the finances of many people in the UK. It would be wrong to suggest that identity theft insurance is the be all and end all but there is no doubt that it does offer a safety net in the event of fraudulent activity.
Conclusion
The problem with ID theft is the fact that even if you are the most careful person in the world, shred your bank statements and monitor your credit card account there are ways and means that identity thieves can still attack your finances. Much of the information an ID thief would need could possibly be in the public domain via the Internet or other public records. They may only require a small amount of personalised information from you to complete the picture and potentially leave you open to a massive financial hit.