One week on from its launch, ClearScore, the UK’s leading free credit score and credit marketplace, announces an impressive 400,000 user sign-ups to ClearScore Protect, a free dark web monitoring service designed to help protect people from online fraud.
A staggering 2.8 million leaked passwords have been discovered on the dark web since the launch of ClearScore Protect, with users seeing an average of seven password breaches from online accounts leaked on the dark web.
Nationally representative research reveals that a third of adults in the UK have been victims of online fraud, with over half (55%) of UK consumers more worried about online fraud now than before the Covid-19 pandemic. There is also a disconnect between perception and reality, with only a quarter of UK residents believing that some of their data could be for sale on the dark web, whereas almost two-thirds (63%) of users who signed up to ClearScore Protect in the last week were alerted to dark web password breaches.
ClearScore Protect is a free service that monitors the dark web for any stolen passwords, alerting users to any potential breaches every three months. Once users have been alerted to any stolen information, they will be shown a page containing all of their breached passwords, with simple and easy instructions on how to change them. In performing these actions, the user will prevent cybercriminals from taking advantage of their data for financial gain.
ClearScore also offers Protect Realtime – a subscription version of the service which monitors up to three separate email addresses on a daily basis for £2.99 a month. Subscribers are able to see any compromised information – not just passwords – and also receive tailored advice and dedicated fraud support if they fall victim to online fraud.
CEO and Co-founder of ClearScore, Justin Basini said, “With the coronavirus pandemic heightening people’s concerns around online fraud, and ClearScore Protect highlighting the staggering number of password breaches people are experiencing, now is the perfect time to take action to protect your online identity.
Having fallen victim to identity theft myself, I understand how it can impact a person’s financial and mental well-being and would encourage people to take stock of their online security now. Although you should use a different password for each of your online accounts, our research discovered that people in the UK are most likely to only rotate two to three passwords for their online accounts, not nearly enough to keep them safe and secure.
If you were to do one thing today to improve your online security, I would encourage everyone to review their passwords, signup for a password manager, such as 1Password, and ensure none of your online accounts use the same passwords as your financial accounts.”
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