Children receive a Social Security number not long after they are born. It’s against the law for them to use that number to obtain credit until they are at least 18 years old. The number remains dormant until then.
However, it is entirely possible that your child’s SSN could be stolen and used to commit identity theft.
Companies that issue credit have no way of finding out if a SSN belongs to a child!
Criminals have discovered methods for getting Social Security numbers that belong to children, and use them to obtain credit. This is typically carried out through selling what’s known as credit privacy numbers (CPN) or credit protection numbers online.
The biggest problem is that you and your kids won’t realize that an identity theft has occurred until they are nearly adults. It simply won’t be discovered because the child’s SSN isn’t being used for anything.
A non-profit consumer advocacy group called the Identity Theft Resource Center has played a role in writing a proposed law designed to protect the identities of our kids. The ITRC has proposed the creation of something called the Minors 17-10 Database.
The database would be updated by the Social Security Administration, which would add names and numbers to the record each month. Companies which issues credit would then be able to see how Social Security numbers compare to the database. That means they would know if the number belongs to a child. Every U.S. citizen under the age of 17 years and 10 months would have their SSN listed on the registry.
This would not only prevent criminals for abusing a minor’s SSN, it would prevent youth from getting illegal credit cards as well. Not to mention, businesses all across the nation would notice a decrease in losses caused by fraud.
The bill is called H.R. 2706: Young Children Social Security Number Protection Act of 2009. Presently, the legislation is being discussed in the House Ways and Means Committee. However, it’s a good idea to contact your legislators and tell them to speed up the passage of this important bill.
Officials from the credit reporting bureaus, many business groups as well as the Social Security Administration itself support the proposal. But sometimes politicians need a little extra push to get things done!
It seems like there’s practically nothing you can do right now to prevent your child’s Social Security number from being stolen. There are, however, ways to look for suspicious activity.
If your child gets credit applications in the mail, and especially if they get a notice of denial – that is a major red flag. It’s also possible to request a credit report for your child’s name to see if anything exists under their Social Security number.
