Norton LifeLock review

Norton LifeLock is one of the better options for identity theft protection to keep you safe online, no matter the device.

Norton LifeLock review
(Image: © Norton)

Top Ten Reviews Verdict

Norton LifeLock is a superb identity theft protection program which will leave you feeling safer online. The rare 60-day guarantee and free VPN are great bonuses.

Pros

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    60-day guarantee

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    Free VPN

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    Easy to use controls

Cons

  • -

    Expensive

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Norton LifeLock is one of the best identity theft protection services right now. As such, you get online protection with added extras like a free VPN, for most tiers. LifeLock not only helps to protect you from identity theft in real time but also can help recover your digital life, should the worst happen.

If information like your credit card number or Social Security Number gets into someone else's hands, then it pays to have Norton LifeLock scanning over 10,000 known websites, and the dark web, for those details appearing (in the wrong hands). 

This data may not get out because of any personal security failing, though. Big companies suffer data breaches which could see your information shared. That's why it pays to have protection so you know when you're under threat, rather than finding out when it may be too late. That's exactly what Norton LifeLock does: it helps to protects you, with a team of real people ready to spring into action when needed. It's worth noting, though, that no ID theft provider can guarantee your information is 100% safe - that's not how they work.

All our reviews of identity theft protection apps and services examine features, pricing, alternative options, and what you actually get with each product. We do not go hands-on with these services for our reviews because it is almost impossible to accurately simulate and test these services. In order to properly test ID Theft apps we would need to purposefully hack accounts to assess the level of protection, provide personally identifiable information that would compromise our reviewer, and we would need to perform multiple credit checks - all over the course of several months.

Norton LifeLock: Plans and pricing

Norton LifeLock: Plans and pricing

(Image credit: Norton)

Norton LifeLock is a great product but one of the main issues people have with it is the pricing. Not only can this be an expensive product – although not as expensive as having your identity stolen – it's the plans that are difficult to parse and understand. There are too many paid tiers to pick from, overcomplicating the end result.

Another layer to this confusion comes from the fact that LifeLock can also be bundled as part of the Norton 360 antivirus program.

As you can see in the above image, the tiers break down into: Select, from $8.99; Advantage, from $17.99; and Ultimate Plus, from $25.99 per year. These jump up after the first year to $11.99, $22.99 and $34.99 respectively. 

Select gets you up to $25,000 cover with identity, social security number and credit monitoring. You get all that plus cover on up to five devices and an included VPN.

Advantage pushes the cover limit to $100,000, works on 10 devices, and alerts for bank fraud when someone commits a crime with your name. You also get priority 24/7 live member support, sex offender registry reports, bank account takeover alerts and more.

Ultimate Plus adds access to credit bureau monitoring for three devices, $1 million of protection, 401K protection and unlimited connections on devices for LifeLock.

Norton LifeLock: How easy is it to use?

Norton LifeLock does the job of taking what could be a complex and daunting system and makes it really accessible and, dare we say it, friendly. Yup, you still have that bright Norton yellow everywhere that leaves you a bit on alert, but that's the point, right?

You can start at the top level and dip into the Privacy section, for example, where setup for your credit card and phone is possible. This is quick and easy with clear options. Or drill a little deeper into your personally identifiable information to really work out how well protected you are.

Norton LifeLock

(Image credit: Norton)

The layout across devices, be they laptops or smartphones, is as consistent as possible. As such you can quickly to check up on your security anytime you need without having to navigate varying menus. Norton has been doing this a very long time and the quality of the dashboard and menus make this very apparent.

Norton LifeLock: Features

Norton LifeLock throws in a VPN with all levels of its plans, and we'd recommend it for anyone who wants proper online protection. Check out our best VPN guide for more on that. In short, without a VPN, entering your bank and credit details, even to check them, is doing so from a risky position – a VPN masks your IP to make that safer.

The credit bureau, and 401K monitoring (of Norton LifeLock's Ultimate Plus tier), are hugely positive features, which mean you won't be waiting around for a credit report to see if you've been attacked. Instead this will quickly alert you to any crimes in your name and will have Norton staff ready to start working to recover your identity. 

Norton LifeLock

(Image credit: Norton)

Should the worst happen, and a thief gets your details and uses them, Norton LifeLock's ID recovery specialists help you get back on track, and not just by telling you who to call, as some cheaper services do. These customer agents are available 24/7 so you have that peace of mind when you invest at any plan level. This means they can do the hard work of making those calls for you so there is more chance of fixing the breach without you having to take additional action.

For Windows PCs there is a cloud backup service provided on all tiers which offers a decent 100GB of storage capacity. There is also a password manager included and a parental protection system which are both very easy to use and add extra layers of protection over device connections. While it is feature packed, we like the Childwatch protection offered by IdentityForce, which is one of the few reasons Norton Lifelock isn't quite at the top of our list.

Should you choose Norton LifeLock?

Norton LifeLock is a great option for identity theft protection and works well for anyone who wants the complete package. However, that's the point here, you'll need to pay for the top-end to get the most comprehensive cover. Some of the competition offers a lot of these features in their basic packages too, so this may not be your cheapest option. If you really want to save a few dollars, something like ID Watchdog is slightly cheaper (but, for us, not as comprehensive).

It's also worth keeping in mind that even the premium ID theft services can’t fully protect your information and credit, but by being alerted as soon as possible and having a team ready to help, it can make the fallout from any attacks far less daunting.

Luke Edwards

Luke is a veteran tech journalist with decades of experience covering everything from TVs, power tools, science and health tech to VPNs, space, gaming and cars. You may recognize him from appearances on plenty of news channels or have read his words which have been published in most tech titles over the years. In his spare time (of which he has little as a father of two) Luke likes yoga, surfing, meditation, DIY and consuming all the books, comics and movies he can find.