The Single Moms Guide to Protecting Their Child’s Credit from ID Thieves

Being a single mom is a tough job as there are so many things that need your attention when it comes to taking care of your child. With so many things to manage, many moms overlook the most important thing concerning their child’s future, and that is child ID theft. You may not realize this but adults are not the only ones who get their identities stolen, according to a research it is said that children are more prone to identity theft than adults. So if you want to protect your child’s credit from ID thieves then you may find some good tips here to help you protect your child’s identity.

Preventive Measures against ID Theft

1. Identity theft is dependent on the Social Security number and the reason that kids have their identities stolen is because their Social Security numbers are not used and it takes years for parents to realize that their kid’s ID has been stolen. For single moms, it can create a huge problem when they go to open a bank account for their child or create a college fund because getting a clean slate after identity theft can be quite difficult. So make sure that you keep your child’s Social Security number safe and don’t disclose it to anyone.
2. Keep a check on your child’s credit report because when your child is young the agencies don’t keep a record of credit, but if you find that there is a credit report in your child’s name thenit means that it is a case of ID theft. You can also ask the agency to freeze the credit report and then have it lifted when your child is all grown up.
3. Protect all the personal information of your child including the date of birth and keep all the documents like birth certificates in a safe place or locked up so that nobody except you has access to the important information that may lead to ID theft.
4. If your child uses social networking sites then tell them not to share their personal information on it and set the privacy of the profile to only family and friends. Being a little cautious doesn’t harm anyone.
5. Whenever you get a document in the mail that has any kind of personal information of your child, it is better to shred them than to keep them laying around. You may not realize it but anyone can have a look at them such as a babysitter or a guest, so it’s better to be safe than sorry later.

Recovery from ID Theft

If by any chance your child’s ID gets stolen and you find out, then you should immediately contact the agencies that handle the credit and file a report for dispute. You can also go to the police to ask them for an investigation on the ID theft by bringing copies of all the credit reports and loan applications. This way the lenders won’t extend credit to the ID thieves and you will be able to recover your child’s identity.

It’s a huge responsibility to raise a kid when you are a single mom so make sure that you keep all these things in mind. Always remember that prevention is better than cure and with these simple precautions you can easily protect your child’s credit from ID theft.

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