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Parents Unaware Their Children are the Target of the Number One Crime in America – Identity Theft
June 17, 2009 | Leave a Comment
Children are increasingly falling victim to the identity theft epidemic (78% increase rate) and families are largely unaware their children have been offended. Children continue to be victimized for years until as a young adult, they are denied services when seeking credit to pay for college or a car loan, applying for a job, or trying to get a drivers license.
PQS conducted a study of parents with children under the age of 16 and found that out of the 500 families surveyed, none of the families monitored their childrens credit records, to determine if they had been victimized.
Identity theft is exploding and the economy is imploding causing the perfect storm. Child identity theft is a tsunami building under the surface that threatens our childrens future, states Dianne Cutter, CEO of PQS, Inc. PQS is committed to ensuring our children are safe from this threat by providing free training for families on how to protect their children; free credit monitoring, reports, and scores, and free recovery services if a childs identity is stolen for children of our SecuriSphere subscribers (www.securisphere.us).
Studies today show there is a victim of identity theft in each classroom with over 400,000 children having their identity stolen each year. Incredibly, these numbers are likely very conservative since parents dont typically monitor their childrens credit, as shown in the PQS study. Consequently, thieves have access to a childs identity for years, largely undeterred. It could be years before we fully understand the impact of the growing incidence of identity theft on our children.
If a childs identity has been misused for years it can be a very difficult and complex task to sort through the quagmire to recover the childs identity. In the meantime, the young adults are unable to get on with their life and in some cases, even have warrants issued for their arrest.
Cutter says parents should practice these top 10 strategies to protect their children against identity theft.
1. Monitor your childs credit records and make sure they do not have a report building against them. At a minimum, take advantage of the annual free credit report www.annualcreditreport.com. Or to catch issues early, monitor your childs credit on an ongoing basis.
2. If you have any concerns about your child being a potential victim, contact the credit monitoring agencies, and place a fraud alert on your childs records (or a security freeze www.consumersunion.org/campaigns/learn_more/003484indiv.html,) The credit agency phone numbers (you only need to contact one) are: TransUnion 800-680-7289, Equifax 800-525-6285, Experian 888-297-2742.
3. If you receive credit card offers, telemarketing calls, or email marketing in your childs name, this is a red flag to check their credit records.
4. Be stingy about giving out your childs social security number. Request that an alternative identifier be used or that only the last 4 digits be used.
5. Shred any documentation with your childs identifying information on it prior to disposing of it. Thieves steal trash to access information.
6. Lock identifying information within your house. People visiting your home including friends, or people you contract to do work at your home could be potential thieves. Studies show that children often fall victim to family members, so it is important to keep files locked.
7. When buying gifts for children (especially over the internet), only use sites you can trust, and limit the information you provide.
8. Check your EOBs (Explanation of Benefits) from your health insurance company to ensure the services received are accurate. Medical Identity Theft is the fastest growing segment of identity theft.
9. Do not put identifying information in your cell phone or on your computer. If you do have this information saved (e.g. tax records on your computer) be sure you use a wipe program prior to disposing of the computer, lock your computer, do not use file sharing services such as music sharing (users can see other information on your computer), follow safe computing practices, and use password protection to access your computer, email, and records.
10. If you have bank accounts in your childs name, stop having the statements mailed to you; instead access these services online.
During this 25th anniversary of The Victims of Crime Act parents need to take action to protect their childrens identity.
Author's Bio
Dianne Cutter, the founder and CEO of PQS, Inc., has been providing consulting, tools, and training to help fortune 50 companies, small businesses, and individuals be prepared for 20 years.
PQS products include SecuriSphere Identity Theft Resolution (securisphere.us) supported by EA-USA, part of a global 500 company; the PQS Threat Alert providing timely information on current threats and scams; and The Personal Record Vault, a digital database and online vault (thepersonalrecordsvault.com).
PQS consulting services include ISO9000, ISO14000, data breach, business continuity planning, disaster recovery, supplier development, and executive project management.
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