Following Equifax hack, Credit Karma to launch free ID monitoring

NEW YORK - Credit Karma is launching a new free service that will alert customers if their identity data has been compromised in hacks, the San Francisco-based financial services company said on Friday in the wake of massive breach at credit monitoring agency Equifax.

The new ID monitoring service is being tested and will be available in October, the company said on Friday.

Similar to services offered by Symantec-owned LifeLock, CreditKarma will keep track of data breaches and tell customers if they are one of the victims. Customers then can check to use the company's credit monitoring services and flag suspicious activities.

The company said it was accelerating the launch of the new service in response to the large data breach at Equifax, where thieves may have stolen personal information of 143 million Americans.

CreditKarma saw a 50 percent spike in sign-ups to its platform in the weekend after the hack, it said.

While the ID monitoring will be free, the company hopes it will drive more people back to its services.