Children are Victims of Identity Theft Too

by Doug Pollack

This excerpt from an MSN Money article titled "Your 5-minute guide to protecting your identity" published July 6, 2007 demonstrates the time consuming nature of dealing with an identity theft problem.

"Thieves may sell your information on the black market or use it to obtain money, credit or even expensive medical procedures. Unless you're vigilant in protecting your records, you'll have to work even harder to repair the damage to your credit. The average victim spends 30 to 40 hours rectifying the problem.

The article outlines numerous helpful tips for helping prevent the theft of one's identity. But something that is less "obvious" is that around 5% of identity theft cases involve children. They make particularly lucrative targets because it can take many years before they come of age and the identity theft becomes recognized.

A related Bankrate article notes that "...children's identities are used to obtain credit cards, get driver's licenses or open accounts. Often the information is sold for use by illegal immigrants or individuals attempting to restart their lives and avoid arrest." This makes it doubly important for families to protect not only their breadwinners but also their kids.

What is an identity theft “Recovery Advocate”?

By Heather Wells


As head of the recovery department at Identity Safeguards, my group and I provide assistance to thousands of victims of identity theft. We are made up of a collaborative team of Intake Specialists and Recovery Advocates who are dedicated to the recovery and restoration of our victim’s identities. We take on the hard work of identity restoration every day so our victims don’t have to.

This includes performing the core of our duties: restoring a victim’s good name and credit back to pre-theft status after an ID theft incident. From the smallest compromise to the most complicated of cases, we have pretty much seen it all. We have established connections with the Fraud Departments of many major creditors and are privy to the specific requirements and procedures they have for their fraud investigations. This is time-saving knowledge that victims working on their own or even those working with a recovery “advice” service cannot claim.

Our job also encompasses providing education about victims’ rights and offering information regarding preventative measures. Identity theft is constantly evolving and growing in complexity, so part of our responsibility to our victims is to be informed about the latest scams, procedures, and legislation. You’d be hard-pressed to find a more knowledgeable group of people!

But most importantly, as Recovery Advocates we provide our victims with support and reassurance throughout the recovery process. Having personal, one-on-one interaction with the same Advocate for the duration of their cases is one of the things the victims we work with appreciate more than anything.

We are hoping that this blog will educate, inform, and entertain!