I don’t usually comment on commercial services, but this seems blog-worthy. Damon Darlin reports:
Want to know if your identity has been stolen? Or if your or your child’s Social Security number is being pawned off on the Internet?
There’s an app for that.
On Wednesday, AllClear ID, an identity protection service that scans the Internet for stolen information, will offer a free mobile app for the iPhone and iPad to alert users when their personal or financial records have been compromised. The free app alerts users if their credit card and Social Security numbers have been stolen or if thieves are using their child’s identity.
Read more on The New York Times.
I would hope that consumers don’t get a false sense of security by downloading this app as there are so many hacks of credentials. What percent of them are not reported to the National Cyber-Forensics and Training Alliance on which their fraud detection is based? It would be nice to get some sense of how comprehensive their database is and I’d be interested to find out more if they’d like to get in touch.
And of course, read the Privacy Policy of any business or app you use. AllClear ID’s privacy policy is written in pretty plain language as these things go. I’m not happy about their “indefinite retention” clause on data and would encourage them to re-think and revise that (as I did with PopVox in reviewing their privacy policy). At some point, consumers should have the right to know that their account data has been permanently deleted and that it’s not at the business’s discretion.
You can read more about their service on AllClear ID.