Helping Families Protect Against Identity Theft - Experian Announces FamilySecure.com

IRVINE, Calif., Oct. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Experian Consumer Direct(SM), the leading provider of online direct-to-consumer credit reports, scores and monitoring products, today announced the launch of FamilySecure.com, a new resource to help parents and guardians monitor for identity theft that may be affecting them and their children. Through the Web site, parents and guardians can enroll themselves and their children in a comprehensive credit monitoring product that alerts them of key changes in their credit file and their children's that could be a sign of identity theft.

With the patent-pending technology of FamilySecure.com, parents and guardians are notified of any credit inquiries, open accounts or public records such as bankruptcies, tax liens or monetary judgments associated with them or their child's identity. If a match is found, the parent or guardian is alerted via e-mail and information is provided regarding how to take corrective action if identity theft has occurred. Parents and guardians can enroll an unlimited number of their minor children (age 18 and under) at FamilySecure.com.

"FamilySecure.com provides peace of mind for parents by monitoring their Experian credit report activity, as well as their children's, for signs of identity theft," said Ty Taylor, president of Experian Consumer Direct. "This new product represents our continued commitment to delivering the most robust credit monitoring products on the market to maintain the integrity of our customers' personal information and back this with an unprecedented $2 million guarantee for identity theft expenses."

According to the ID Theft Data Clearinghouse as reported by the Federal Trade Commission, 10,835 identity theft complaints were filed on behalf of victims under 18 years old in 2006, up from 6,512 identity theft reports filed on behalf of the same age group in 2003. In addition, a recent Experian-Gallup Personal Credit Index(SM) survey showed that 31 percent of consumers feel it is very easy for someone to steal a child's identity (data sampling was conducted in July, August and September 2007). Identity thieves prey on the personal information of children by illegally obtaining their name and Social Security number to establish lines of credit. If left unchecked and until the fraud is resolved, the minors' creditworthiness can be seriously damaged and cause issues for them when they try to obtain credit as an adult.

    Key features include:

    --  $2 Million Guarantee* -- If a parent, guardian or child becomes a
        victim of identity theft while the parent or guardian is using the
        credit monitoring product and fraud resolution service provided by
        Experian Consumer Direct through FamilySecure.com, Experian Consumer
        Direct will reimburse certain identity theft expenses up to $2 million
        in accordance with the terms of the guarantee.
    --  Alerts -- Parents and guardians receive e-mail alerts regarding key
        changes in their credit file as well as their child's. If any credit
        inquiries, open accounts or public records are found using the
        parent's, guardian's or child's identity, the parent or guardian is
        alerted.
    --  Fraud Alerts -- If parents or guardians suspect they are a victim of
        identity theft, they have the option to place an automatically
        recurring 90-day fraud alert on their personal credit file, which
        requires lenders to contact them directly before extending credit.
    --  Credit Monitoring -- Daily monitoring of their Experian credit file is
        provided for parents and guardians and monthly monitoring for their
        children.
    --  Credit Reports and Scores -- Parents and guardians receive unlimited
        access to their Experian credit report and credit score.

How to enroll

A parent or guardian can enroll themselves and their children for $19.95 per month at http://www.FamilySecure.com.

    * Due to New York state law restrictions, the Family Secure(SM) guarantee
      cannot be offered to residents of New York.

About Experian Consumer Direct

Experian Consumer Direct is part of Experian Interactive(SM) and a market leader for online credit reports, scores and monitoring products delivered directly to consumers through Web sites such as http://www.FreeCreditReport.com. Among its products, the business provides consumers with instant access to their credit report and credit score, plus credit monitoring products that monitor all three national credit reports daily and include fraud resolution. Experian Consumer Direct has established integrated, co-branded partnerships with leading online financial destinations that provide consumers with a broad range of comprehensive online financial products and information essential to managing one's financial life. For more information, visit http://www.experian.com.

ConsumerInfo.com, Inc. ("CIC") is also known as "Experian Consumer Direct." CIC, a sister company of Experian, is the provider of the Family Secure product.

About Experian

Experian(R) is a global leader in providing information, analytical and marketing services to organizations and consumers to help manage the risk and reward of commercial and financial decisions. Combining its unique information tools and deep understanding of individuals, markets and economies, Experian partners with organizations around the world to establish and strengthen customer relationships and provide their businesses with competitive advantage. For consumers, Experian delivers critical information that enables them to make financial and purchasing decisions with greater control and confidence. Clients include organizations from financial services, retail and catalog, telecommunications, utilities, media, insurance, automotive, leisure, e-commerce, manufacturing, property and government sectors.

Experian Group Limited is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. It has corporate headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, and operational headquarters in Costa Mesa, Calif., and Nottingham, UK. Experian employs approximately 15,500 people in 36 countries worldwide, supporting clients in more than 65 countries. Annual sales are in excess of $3.8 billion.

For more information, visit the Group's Web site at http://www.experiangroup.com.

Experian and the marks used herein are service marks or registered trademarks of Experian Information Solutions, Inc. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

    Contact:  Kelly Poffenberger
              Experian Public Relations
              949 567 7634
              kelly.poffenberger@experian.com