We talked a few weeks ago about the growing number of children becoming victims of identity theft. While many of these crimes are committed by parents themselves, there is a growing number of con-artists preying on the perfect credit of children. A recent study conducted by an identity theft services company, and published by Forbes, shows that up to ten percent of minors have had their identities to obtain credit. Here’s a selection from “Debix: Ten Percent of Children are Victimes of Identity Theft,” by Robert Vamosi with Forbes:
The report’s author, Richard Power, Distinguished Fellow, Director of Strategic Communications at Carnegie Mellon, agreed this was not a rigorous academic study but defended the report’s finding by saying “it won’t matter what the numbers are if it happens to you.” He added that stolen identities from children might be the hottest ticket in the identity underground today. For example, included within the report are first-person accounts of an eight-year-old whose credit history included in a foreclosure on a home, a three-year-old in collection for unpaid utility bills, and a five-year-old whose SSN was used for a hunting license in another state. The youngest victim was three months old. The highest losses were attributed to a 16 year old who found nearly three-quarters of a million dollars in fraud losses pegged to the misuse of her SSN.
Whether you’re concerned about the handling of your own sensitive information or your child’s, it’s certain that proper disposal of private information is necessary at any age. Parents must take the responsibility for maintaining their child’s credit and identity while they are a minor. Shredding social security numbers and other credit information are a must, along with securely storing documents that must be saved.
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