Q: I鈥檝e heard the horror stories of a child鈥檚 identity being stolen, so what should I be doing to protect my children鈥檚 identities?
It鈥檚 easy to think that identity theft is only a problem for adults, but statistics from last year reveal that it鈥檚 twice as likely that a child鈥檚 ID is stolen over an adult鈥檚.
Identity thieves prefer to steal a child鈥檚 ID because they know that it鈥檚 more likely to go undiscovered for years until the child is old enough to start applying for credit.
Proof of this can be found on dark web marketplaces selling stolen information that can be used for ID theft.
An adult鈥檚 stolen W-2 can be purchased for as little as $35, while an infant鈥檚 “fullz,” which includes the baby鈥檚 name, Social Security number, date of birth and even mother鈥檚 maiden name can fetch over $300, .
A blank canvas
With an infant鈥檚 stolen ID, thieves have free reign to use it for a large variety of nefarious activities that range from applying for credit, to obtaining government benefits and healthcare, to filing fraudulent tax returns.
In some cases, your child鈥檚 Social Security number could be used to create a hybrid ID, which means that they are essentially inventing a person that doesn鈥檛 actually exist.
If you find yourself in that type of mess, it can become even more complicated to untangle the fraud and regain control of your child鈥檚 identity.
How your child’s info is compromised
From the moment your child has been assigned a Social Security number, it can become vulnerable to theft as it is being used in the normal course of life.
The most likely area of exposure will come from the medical world, as this is most likely the first place you鈥檒l be asked to use their Social Security number.
over the past three years, more than half of them (1,338) were from companies related to the medical field that included providers and insurance carriers.
Protection steps
Keeping tight control over any printed document with your child鈥檚 sensitive information is an obvious first step, along with making sure to shred anything you plan to discard.
When you are asked to provide your child鈥檚 Social Security number by anyone, make sure it鈥檚 actually a requirement.
Pay attention to your physical mail, especially junk mail: If your child鈥檚 name is listed as the recipient, it can be an early indication that someone is making use of your child鈥檚 identity.
Check with the three credit bureaus — 听听and — to see if a credit file already exists for your child.
In some cases, you can put a freeze on your child鈥檚 credit file, but make sure you keep the PIN that gets assigned to unfreeze the file in a really safe place that will get passed to your child in the event something happens to you.
Ken Colburn is founder and CEO of . Ask any tech question on or .
