You get a lot of bang for your buck with Zander Insurance’s identity theft protection. You’d be hard pressed to find an identity theft protection provider with cheaper plan options than Zander, especially among those that offer both adult and family plans. And if you do, Zander probably has them beat on the overall quality of product.
I like that Zander caters to individuals and families on a budget and doesn’t stray too far from that ethos. It does lack some notable features you’d get with more premium services, but with Zander, you can pay less for the services you need without any unwanted add-ons thrown in that often boost your monthly payment.
Read more: We Can’t Stop Falling for These 4 Identity Theft Scams. Here’s How to Spot Them
Who should use Zander ID theft protection?
I’d recommend Zander Insurance’s identity theft protection service for anyone who wants trustworthy identity theft coverage but doesn’t have a lot of wiggle room in their budget. For as low as $7 per month, you get the basics of ID theft protection: dark web and Social Security number monitoring, plus $1 million in identity theft insurance. You also get white glove restoration services so that you won’t be left to fend for yourself if your identity is stolen.
That value pricing extends to families too. Zander’s family plans start at $13 per month and cover two adults and unlimited children. Its top Elite Bundle family plan costs $22 per month compared with industry leaders Aura and LifeLock, which charge much more. Aura charges $50 per month for its lone family plan, while Lifelock’s family plans range from $36 to $80 per month.
Despite its lower pricing, Zander doesn’t skimp on its features, especially when it comes to its Elite Bundle tier. In addition to identity monitoring and insurance, customers receive a virtual private network, password manager and antivirus protection. Bank and retirement account monitoring are also included through its top plan.
You should look elsewhere for identity theft protection if you want a service to monitor your credit with all three credit bureaus. Zander offers Experian credit lock but no oversight of your Experian, TransUnion or Equifax credit reports. You’ll have to pull and review your credit on your own for any suspicious accounts or sign up for a supplemental credit monitoring service.
What identity theft plans does Zander offer?
Zander Insurance offers two protection plans: Essential and Elite Bundle. Both are offered to individuals and families. However, there are no free trials available to customers to try the service risk free.
Each of Zander’s coverage tiers include the basics of identity theft protection: dark web and Social Security number monitoring plus insurance for stolen funds and emergency expenses.
Essential Plan
The Essential Plan is bare-bones and rightfully so for just $7 per month. With it, you get the essentials of identity theft protection in addition to a few ancillary services. Zander will monitor your home address for any changes with the United States Postal Service and inform you of any data breaches updates that may impact you under this plan. Lost wallet insurance is also included in this tier.
Elite Bundle
Zander Insurance’s top tier includes everything in the Essential plan plus a list of online security and financial monitoring features. For $12 per month, individual subscribers receive bank and retirement account monitoring alerts as well as the ability to track credit card transactions. This plan also comes with account takeover monitoring and Experian credit lock.
In terms of cybersecurity, Zander’s Elite Bundle plan provides a password manager, virtual private network and antivirus protection for up to 20 devices.
Zander ID theft protection products, compared
| Essential Plan | Elite Bundle | |
| Individual | $7 | $12 |
| Family | $13 | $22 |
| Top features | Dark web and social security monitoring; change in address monitoring; data breach updates and lost wallet protection. | Everything in the essential plan plus: home title monitoring; bank and retirement account monitoring; transaction monitoring; new account monitoring; VPN and antivirus protection; password lock and Experian credit lock. |
| Identity Theft Insurance | $1 million in identity theft insurance for individual plans; $2 million for family plans. | $1 million in identity theft insurance for individual plans; $2 million for family plans. |
What’s it like to use Zander ID Theft Protection?
I tested Zander’s Elite Bundle plan for individuals for this review. Creating my account was straightforward. Like other identity theft protection services tested by CNET Money, it required me to share my Social Security number, name, email and phone number to get started.
My first impressions of Zander’s software were that it reminded me of using an insurance portal or some mundane government site. It’s very plain looking. Zander, of course, offers home, auto and health insurance plans, in addition to identity theft protection.
I liked that every time I logged into Zander from a new device, it asked me to complete two-factor authentication. It made me feel secure about handing over so much of my personal information. However, Zander does quickly log you out if you’re inactive for just a few minutes, which can be frustrating if you constantly have to log back in. Three minutes of inactivity is all it took before I received this pop up below.
Screenshot by Danni Santana/CNET
Zander’s site is easy to navigate, largely because there isn’t much to play around with. The mobile app offers a very similar experience, just a few buttons to click on that detail your coverage, alerts and what financial accounts are monitored.
When you log in on a computer or tablet, you’ll land on your personal dashboard. Here you’ll see two tabs: “personal” and “financial.” Under personal, you can view your monitored private data, such as your Social Security number, phone and email address — all required upon sign up. You can choose to have your license, insurance card or passport info monitored by Zander on the dark web as well.
The financial tab on your dashboard allows you to add bank accounts and credit cards you want Zander to monitor. Zander says it partners with over 500 banks, so manually adding to yours shouldn’t be an issue. Once you do, you’ll see a table right below your added accounts that will show your list of current balances, including your investments and any outstanding loans.
Your dashboard is notably the only place on Zander’s website where I found the option to access the VPN, antivirus and password manager included in the Elite Bundle plan. You can find that under “recommendations” on the right side of the screen. It’s not hard to spot, but I would prefer it if it was also listed as a drop down menu option on the navigation bar up top, since it’s one of the company’s main features.
On that navigation menu, under “identity theft protection,” you’ll find Experian credit lock, which instantly freezes your credit with the credit bureau. There’s a thorough FAQ section on this screen as well that breaks down what the service does and the benefits of using it. Zander doesn’t offer credit monitoring though — a big downside — so you will have to review your credit reports with Experian, Equifax and TransUnion yourself.
Screenshot by Danni Santana/CNET
Finally, you can modify your alert settings by clicking on the icon with your initials on the upper right side of the screen. If you want to get alerted about withdrawals or deposits over $500 from your accounts, you can toggle this notification on. You can also choose to receive an alert if your checking account balance drops under $500. These values are customizable.
Screenshot by Danni Santana/CNET
In the “Alert Center” under the icon drop-down menu, you’ll find all the alerts Zander has sent you. So far, I’ve received only my Social Security alias report, which documents all names and addresses linked to my SSN. Nothing strange appeared on my report, but if you see anything suspicious, Zander offers you some quick tips about what to do.
Screenshot by Danni Santana/CNET
Other notable features
Zander features an “education center” tab on its navigation menu that some members will find useful. It details some steps you can take to protect your identity. Some of the tips are standard: checking your credit reports, avoiding weak passwords and utilizing multi-factor authentication. But others, like investing in a shredder and not sharing personal information unless you initiated the conversation, are great additional tips.
Screenshot by Danni Santana/CNET
Under “support,” you’ll see a breakdown of Zander’s full service restoration services in addition to a phone number you can call if you suspect your identity has been stolen. Zander will contact law enforcement on your behalf, help you activate credit freezes with the three major bureaus and review your credit reports, among other services.
The same support dropdown menu is where you’ll find details on your identity theft protection insurance and wallet protection. If you lose your wallet, Zander will cancel and reorder documents and cards for you.
How does Zander’s identity restoration service work?
If you experience identity theft, Zander’s recovery specialists are available 24/7 and will do the heavy lifting for you to recover your identity. You can contact Zander at (888) 210-3274 or email the provider at zanderidt@zanderins.com to start the process.
Zander notably offers $1 million in identity theft insurance and double that amount for any two adults covered in a family plan. The insurance covers unauthorized bank and investment account transfers, legal fees and other out-of-pocket expenses.
If you fall victim to identity theft and choose to sign up for identity theft protection through Zander, you will not be eligible for insurance coverage. However the company will still work with you to recover your identity.
In any case, be sure to report your case to the Federal Trade Commission via IdentityTheft.gov or by calling 1-877-438-4338. Also, place fraud alerts with each of the three major credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion.
Is Zander’s Elite Bundle worth the price?
Zander’s Elite Bundle is worth the $12 monthly price tag for individuals and $22 monthly cost for families because you get a lot of the same features that are offered by more expensive rivals through the plan. This includes credit and bank transaction tracking and home title monitoring. Online security tools, such as a password manager and VPN, are also included.
Zander Elite Bundle’s $12 price also compares very favorably to services like Identity Force, Identity Guard and LifeLock by Norton, which charge upward of $20 per month to access similar features through its respective UltraSecure, Total and Advantage plans. These companies do include features in their same tiers that Zander doesn’t offer members, like identity vaults and alerts for crimes in your name. So be sure to compare plans and decide if you think the additional few dollars a month are worth it to you.
The major downside of Zander’s top plan is that it doesn’t offer credit bureau monitoring, which many customers will want. Members only have access to the Experiean credit lock feature that immediately freezes your credit with the agency. Our best overall protection service, Aura, provides three credit bureau monitoring for $15 per month, just a few dollars more than what Zander charges.
Is Zander Insurance ID theft protection right for me?
Zander’s biggest flaw is its lack of credit monitoring. And the truth is, this will be a deal breaker if you want to receive alerts of a new credit account being opened in your name. Yes, you can do this work yourself or sign up for an additional credit monitoring service — but some people will want to enroll in an identity theft plan that does both.
If you want the basics of identity theft protection without the frills, then Zander is a good choice, especially for the price. You’ll get dark web and Social Security number monitoring, identity theft insurance, and white glove restoration services with any plan. If you splurge for its top Elite Bundle option, you’ll pay $12 for additional monitoring features and online security tools that bring consumers great value.
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