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These services proactively stay up-to-date on data points to protect personnel no matter how long they're serving on tours.
Updated August 21, 2025
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LifeLock’s focus on cybersecurity secures your devices and web traffic against hackers, but they also offer powerful core protections to keep military personnel’s identities safe.
Identity Guard uses IBM’s Watson artificial intelligence platform to offer protections that evolve to meet the ever-changing threat landscape of identity theft. Great news for military members who might be away for long periods of time – this service is constantly evolving to stay up-to-date.
Aura provides high-end theft protection and credit monitoring for military personnel, including account breach monitoring, high-risk transaction alerts, lost wallet remediation, and bank fraud monitoring. It also provides access to extra security tools, like an antivirus and a VPN.
In 2023, scammers stole $477 million from active-duty personnel and their families, as well as veterans. 1 Active-duty military are often victims of identity theft because they’re too busy serving our country to keep tabs on all their sensitive data.
It’s also important to understand that the stakes are a lot higher for a member of the military as opposed to the average civilian. An identity theft incident for military personnel can have severe consequences, including the revocation of security clearances, potentially derailing entire careers. It pays to keep yourself protected.
If you are in the military and are frequently on active duty, understand you’re a preferred target of identity theft. You really can’t afford to be without protection. Investing in an identity theft service like the ones mentioned in this guide is your best possible option to protect your military and civilian life with as little disruption as possible.
LifeLock is an excellent pick for military personnel looking for high-end identity restoration services, alongside great credit monitoring and identity theft protection. Highlights include up to $3 million in identity theft insurance, a TransUnion credit lock, a payday loan lock, and Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) alerts.
When we reviewed LifeLock, we really liked that it comes with a TransUnion credit lock, and even a payday loan lock. These features are particularly useful for military personnel. That’s because credit and payday loan locks prevent fraudsters from opening up unauthorized lines of credit or taking out loans in your name. Setting this up before you’re deployed can prevent you from coming home to a financial mess.
Did You Know? There’s also a similar function called a credit freeze. These take a little longer to set up and undo, and they offer different legal protections for different kinds of identity theft compared to standard locks. We recommend contacting the credit monitoring bureaus to discuss your situation and figure out which option might be best for you.
And if you become the victim of identity theft, LifeLock offers some of the best restorative services in 2025. If your identity is stolen and you suffer material losses, they’re going to cover you for up to $1 million dollars. They also offer an additional $1 million for any additional expenses you might rack up. And if your case is so complicated that you need the help of lawyers to unravel it, they’ve got you covered for another $1 million.
Keep in mind, though, that what we mentioned above only comes with LifeLock’s highest subscription tier, which is a little pricey. To see what plan is right for you and your budget, check out our guide to LifeLock’s pricing structure.
| Identity monitoring | Yes |
|---|---|
| Credit monitoring | 1-bureau or 3-bureau |
| Insurance | Up to $3 million |
| Free trial |
30 days (standalone LifeLock plans) 7 days (LifeLock-Norton 360 bundles) |
| Money-back guarantee |
60 days (long-term plans) 14 days (monthly plans) |
Identity Guard is one of our favorite services, and for good reason. They’ve partnered with IBM to leverage the power of the company’s Watson artificial intelligence platform, meaning that their protections are getting smarter every day. That’s important for military personnel who may not be able to pay attention to their credit reports, financial accounts, and other early indicators of identity theft for long periods of time.
In our Identity Guard review, we were impressed with its data breach alert functionality. And we think this tool is especially useful for military personnel. Data breaches occur when a company you’ve done business with (a financial institution, a medical provider, or a government agency) with your identifying information on file gets hacked. This data usually ends up on dark web marketplaces where identity thieves often buy, sell, and trade the identities of others.
Did You Know? Data Breaches are serious business. If your information is leaked, there’s a one in five chance you’re going to become the victim of identity theft.
If your personal information is out there, you want to know about it — even if you’re half a world away serving in the military. Identity Guard scans the records of known data breaches and will alert you if your sensitive information is compromised.
We also like how Identity Guard provides high-risk transaction monitoring, up to $1 million in identity theft insurance, and triple-bureau credit monitoring. It’s also great how all plans include access to a password manager that secures your logins and even provides protection against phishing attacks (many criminals target military members with phishing links).
To get a better idea of what they’re bringing to the table while you’re shopping around, be sure to check out our guide to Identity Guard’s plans and pricing. Also, keep in mind that you might get exclusive savings when buying Identity Guard if you’re a member of the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA). 2
| Identity monitoring | Yes |
|---|---|
| Credit monitoring | 1-bureau or 3-bureau (except Value plan) |
| Insurance | Up to $1 million |
| Free trial | No |
| Money-back guarantee | 60 days (long-term plans) |
Aura offers excellent fraud prevention and monitoring for active-duty military personnel, their families, and even veterans. It easily detects pretty much any type of fraud. Plus, it keeps your devices and web data safe via additional security features.
In our Aura review, we were particularly impressed with the service’s fraud monitoring. It provides excellent bank fraud monitoring, alerting you if someone tries to add new account holders or modify your bank account’s personal information. In addition, it also monitors transactions for credit card, investment, and banking accounts. And it alerts you if any information related to your investment accounts is exposed on the dark web.
You can think of Aura’s ID theft protection system like an intricate series of burglar alarms, each set to go off at the slightest tremor of fraud. When Aura senses suspicious behavior, you’ll get an alert on your app — whether you’re halfway around the world or at home with your family.
Speaking of active duty, Aura will also protect your family while you’re away — not just with instant fraud alerts, but proactively, too, with a complimentary virtual private network (VPN) and antivirus software for safer internet browsing. Because crooks will use all sorts of tricks to lure military personnel and their families, including fake websites that charge for (fake) military and medical records.
Did You Know? Fraudsters have been known to target veterans looking for jobs and educational opportunities. If the application includes a blank line for your Social Security number or bank details, report it to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) immediately.
If you’re interested in a more in-depth look at Aura’s prices and plans, check out our full Aura pricing guide. Keep in mind that even though this service is pricey, it provides excellent value — and it also comes with a 14-day trial and a 60-day money-back guarantee.
| Identity monitoring | Yes |
|---|---|
| Credit monitoring | Three bureaus |
| Insurance | Up to $1 million |
| Free trial | 14 days |
| Money-back guarantee | 60 days |
Simply put — while testing and reviewing IdentityForce, we found it to be an absolute workhorse. They proved all around, comprehensive protections from credit monitoring and reporting, to financial account alerts, to cybersecurity protections. They’re a great choice for anyone looking for a little bit of everything.
Although it might be tempting to do so, it’s best to avoid social media altogether when you’re deployed. However, that doesn’t mean that your accounts aren’t vulnerable — and they’re a treasure trove of information for identity thieves. The good news is that IdentityForce has some of the most powerful social media monitoring tools on the market today; they’ll keep you protected from hackers and alert you if anything suspicious is going on in your absence.
Did You Know? About 22 percent of internet users say their social media accounts have been hacked at least once.
IdentityForce also offers a wealth of resources and financial planning tools to help you get on track with civilian life once you return from duty. Their credit score simulator can help you set goals to build your credit, and their resource library can give you information on everything, from applying for your first credit card to securing a mortgage.
Like most services, they offer several different protection tiers. Take a look at our full breakdown of IdentityForce costs to see if they have what you’re looking for.
| Identity monitoring | Yes |
|---|---|
| Credit monitoring | 3-Bureau |
| Insurance | Up to $2 million |
| Free Trial | 30-Day |
| Money-back guarantee | Yes (prorated) |
It’s mainly due to the military lifestyle, which doesn’t always allow military personnel enough time to monitor certain aspects of their civilian life. In many cases, military service members are so far detached from their civilian life that identity thieves know their crimes are likely to go unreported. In addition, service members are also often targeted because identity thieves know they receive steady paychecks that pile up in their accounts.
Frequent relocations also contribute to this issue. Basically, this can often lead to sensitive documents being exposed, which criminals can intercept. Another problem is that military documents might be stored in public databases or systems with weak security, which hackers can easily compromise.
Our research shows that military service members are likely to fall victim to these types of military identity theft:
These are the best measures to take to prevent military identity theft:
Did You Know? Identity theft services include many identity and credit monitoring features that make it much easier to keep your data safe. For example, they scan the dark web for leaked data associated with you, and provide alerts for suspicious financial transactions. Some of them (like Aura) even provide access to extra security services, like an antivirus, a VPN, and a password manager.
If you are deployed and you suspect identity theft, you should react as quickly as possible. Before you panic, stop and analyze the situation. What type of identity theft has occurred? As you start to unpack the situation, keep meticulous notes with names, dates, and times including records of all your actions.
If you’ve invested in an identity theft protection service, contact them first, as almost all of them provide access to identity restoration services. Their resolution specialists will give you direction based on your specific situation, and they’ll handle a lot of the legwork for you.
That said, here are the general, rule-of-thumb steps you should take. Note, however, that every identity theft incident is different, and your specific needs might deviate from this list.
After an identity theft incident has occurred, it could take hundreds of hours to straighten everything out, and this process could take years. The good news is, if you have a solid identity theft protection service working for you, they will take care of most (but not all) of this for you.
National Association of Attorneys General. (2024, Nov 21). A Staggering $477 Million Stolen in 2023. https://www.naag.org/attorney-general-journal/a-staggering-477-million-stolen-in-2023/
Military Officers Association of America. (2024). Identity Guard. https://www.moaa.org/content/benefits-and-discounts/exclusive-discounts/electronics-and-technology/identity-guard/
