Protect Your Child from Identity Theft

In 2005 5% of the complains the Federal Trade Commission received regarding Identity theft were from individuals younger than 18 and six states have imposed extra penalties against incidents of ID theft involving minors.

To claim a child for tax deduction parents are required to apply for a Social Security Number for a child older than one year. Identity thieves are now using children details because this form of identity theft often goes undiscovered for a long time.

If your child starts out with a bad credit report it can make matters very difficult when trying to get a job, take out a car loan or obtain a mortgage.

Parents need not be powerless and can take steps to safeguard their child's ID:

Steps

 * 1) Keep your child's important papers, including birth certificate and social security card locked up in a safe place.
 * 2) Always ask why they need it when a business asks for a social security number. You will be asked for your child's social security number even more often than the birth certificate. Many businesses, especially hospitals and doctors’ offices, still use social security numbers as identifiers.
 * 3) Never carry your child’s social security card in your wallet. Keep it in a secure place.
 * 4) Refuse to give out your child's birth certificate or social security number unless absolutely necessary as when you enroll your children in school, get them a passport, or apply for their first driver’s license.
 * 5) Make sure that the sports institution will handle the information confidentially, as sports teams often require a birth certificate for sign up.
 * 6) Provide a social security number for legitimate reasons like:
 * 7) *Taxes
 * 8) *Financial accounts
 * 9) *Government assistance, such as Medicare
 * 10) *Request a free credit report each year for your child from each of the three major credit reporting companies, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Credit agencies don't begin a credit history on an individual until particular details are used to open a credit account. This information can include name, age, address and Social Security number.
 * 11) Check your child's social security earnings record. You can also request an annual Social Security Earnings record. This can alert you if someone uses your child's Social Security to obtain a job. To request a report, call 1-800-772-1213 or visit www.ssa.gov/online/ssa-7004.html.
 * 12) Consider enlisting the services of an Identity Protection Service that offers Children's Services such as LifeLock.
 * 13) Unfortunately, some parents or guardians will use their child's identity to obtain credit if theirs is ruined. This can cause the minor a lot of damage later on. Report this kind of activity, anonymously if necessary, to the FBI's Identity Theft Hot line.
 * 14) Educate your children about safe Internet use, teaching them to keep all personal information private when they are on-line. Social networking sites are havens for identity thieves scanning these sites.

Related

 * How to Not Become a Victim of Identity Theft
 * How to Choose Identity Theft Protection

Sources and Citations

 * IdTheftCenter
 * IdentityTheftLabs