According to a 2018 study, more than 1 million children were the victims of identity theft in 2017 alone (the most recent year for which statistics are available), resulting in total losses of $2.6 billion and more than $540 million in out-of-pocket costs to families.
As kids are increasingly exposed to the outside world through online activity, there’s no reason to think those numbers won’t continue to rise.
Clark says that placing a freeze on your minor child’s credit — even before they have an actual credit file — is the single most effective thing you can do to prevent your family from becoming victims of child ID theft.
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All three credit bureaus require you to mail them documents proving your identity and that of your child.
In order to request a freeze, you will need:
Three copies of your government issued ID (Passport, Driver’s Licence, etc)
One copy of a utility bill, bank or insurance statement, etc. in your name
Three copies of your child’s birth certificate
Three copies of your child’s Social Security card
If you are the child’s legal guardian (not birth parent), you will also need three copies of a court document naming you their legal guardian.Here’s what each bureau asks you to submit:
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Step Two: Print Off the Proper Forms
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Step Three: Mail Everything Off
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In total, I spent right around two hours freezing my kids’ credit. The great thing is that you only have to do it once and it’s a small price to pay knowing that they’ll be better protected from identity theft from now into adulthood. On that note: If you haven’t already frozen your own credit, this would be a great time to do that, as well!
Random stuff I find interesting and you may not.
