Identity theft protection represents a compelling way for employers to freshen their benefits package.
William Marling, PhD, executive director of the National Organization for Victim Assistance, listed numerous points of compromise for legitimately disseminating personal information, including doctors' offices, insurance companies, banks, online shopping sites, schools, and credit card issuers.
Complications also arise when trusted family members, friends or co-workers may misuse this information. Identity thefts occur through basic or sophisticated techniques, including dumpster driving, change-of-address forms, "skimming" sensitive information from devices that capture information on ATMs, "phishing" e-mails, or investment fraud. He said solutions include credit monitoring and credit freezing, as well as identity theft protection.
Subject of a movie
"One important lesson in choosing a plan is to pay close attention to detail and key plan features," Greg Meyer, managing director of Worksite Benefit Advisors, said, noting how not all plans are the same.1 Asked whether LifeLock products cover dependents, he said LifeLock does indeed cover family members, including LifeLock Junior™, a product designed to protect children - "a demographic that's often overlooked." And to top it off, identity theft protection services like LifeLock products do not need to be underwritten.
Highly affordable benefit
Affordability is critical, especially at a time when the economy is still sluggish. At a time when more working Americans are seeking to protect their hard-earned dollars than ever before, they are willing to pay for benefits offered on a voluntary basis to meet their particular needs. Identity theft protection is becoming an increasingly relevant service that may play a role in helping recruit and retain talent.
Safeguarding the potential for lost productivity may justify the identity theft protection service investment.
Rockwell added that identity theft gives brokers "something unique and compelling to talk to their clients about" from a strategic consultative standpoint, earning customer-service kudos in the process. LifeLock aligns with various partners and uses internal expertise to provide employers with billing, enrollment, marketing and promotional services, as well as ensuring that all cases run smoothly, he explained.
A meaningful employee communications strategy is critical to helping promote identity theft protection, according to Meyer, while Rockwell added that understanding the need for a particular product could drive plan utilization.
"Without the education that comes from a true voluntary offering - something like face-to-face group meetings, or even a call center telephonic enrollment in some capacity - you can almost see similar participation rates in both those examples just based on the fact that you're educating the individual," Rockwell said.
Bruce Shutan is a Los Angeles-based freelance writer.
1No one can prevent all identity theft.
