Cost of Identity Theft Protection?

I'm sure many who have read this blog have read other blogs about identity theft as well. This is by no means the first identity theft blog (and definitely not the only one). However, I've seen a trend in some of them that I've been avoiding, and that is the embracing of identity theft protection services or identity theft insurance. One particularly popular identity theft protection service in particular keeps cropping up in many blogs (you know which one it is, and I'm not going to mention them or link to them). I don't criticize those who embrace or use these services, and I will mention one if a company offers services with them after a data breach.

Basically, I won't promote a particular identity theft protection service that I wouldn't use myself, and when it comes to protecting my identity, I'm in the "trust nobody" camp. I prefer doing the work myself. I can't speak for others, but as a past identity theft victim, the last thing I wanted was to trust someone else with my identity after that experience, even if they were trying to help.

CNN Money posted a helpful article discussing some of the prices and benefits of credit monitoring services and insurance, but also pointing out that a lot of what these services do, you can do yourself. Personally, the only identity theft protection "service" I would encourage is a credit freeze from the three major credit bureaus. That way you control who accessing your credit report. In some states, it's available for free, and for the rest of us, it can be purchased for a small fee.