Is Your Child At Risk For Identity Theft?
Identity theft is getting a lot of press these days but one of the fastest growing demographics of victims is hardly ever mentioned - children. Children are even more vulnerable because they receive a social security number but few families ever check their kids’ credit reports. They just assume there’s nothing to monitor. Problems can show up years later, however, when the child is grown up and applies for a credit card or a car loan. The problems show up and the application is declined. And at this point, the work necessary to clear the credit fraud is difficult.
How Child Identity Theft Occurs
Children generally get issued social security numbers at a young age because their parents need it for health insurance or tax reasons. The government is busy making rules to keep adults protected from identity theft, but unfortunately their social security number is still one of the most commonly used identification methods for children, at places such as doctors offices and schools.
Since most parents don’t ever think of checking their kids’ credit reports problems due to fraud can go undetected for years. And to compound the issue, the websites that are set up to provide free credit reports won’t do so for children - you need to send a letter by mail requesting this information for your kids.
Results Of Child Identity Theft
Often the child does not realize that they have been a victim of identity theft until many years after the fact. This poses a couple of problems for the new adult in regards to clearing their credit history. Thieves who commit identity theft against children open new accounts and take out loans in the name of the child. Statistics show that it is often much more difficult to clear up accounts that were opened new as compared to existing accounts with fraudulent charges made on them. Secondly, the accounts are frequently many years old and deep into collections by the time the individual becomes aware of the child identity theft. Even if the accounts are paid off after going to collections, the black mark remains from the original lender for many years.
Protect Your Child From Identity Theft
The best protection for your children from identity theft is to check their credit report every year. It’s also wise to stop giving out your child’s social security number except when you absolutely have to. The IRS and sometimes your doctor have the right to know it, but nobody else has to. And never carry your kids’ social security cards with you. Memorize the number and lock the cards away at home or in a safety depost box.