Identity Theft Protection Blog

Concerned parent Christopher ordered a ChildScan (child Social Security number scan) for his teenage daughter Caitlin. He never expected the resulting identity theft to be a complex web of issues that would take over a year to resolve.   The scan uncovered 42 open accounts, totaling over $700,000.

Licensed Investigator Juan was assigned to the case and found that thieves had been using Caitlin’s Social Security number since she was only 3 years old, and the 40+ open accounts included three mortgages, auto loans, credit cards, and various accounts in collections.  Juan immediately began working with creditors to close the accounts and report them as fraud, to begin restoring her identity.

The resolution: Juan was able to close almost all accounts in Caitlin’s name, and today there’s just one left waiting to be processed as fraud and closed. Juan continues to work towards completely clearing Caitlin’s credit history – just in time for her college applications.

Advice to parents: Even with the expertise of a licensed investigator, Juan wants parents to know that “complex cases like this that build up over year and years of identity fraud can take a long time to resolve”.  He advises all parents to check to see if their child’s Social Security number is tainted by identity theft when the child is as young as possible, and to continue regular checks as they grow up in case new issues arise.  Luckily, this case was caught in enough time to not leave a permanent mark on Caitlin’s future and on her identity.

For more

Watch Caitlin’s story on a TODAY show investigative report: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/42997608/ns/today-parenting_and_family/t/stop-id-thieves-stealing-your-kids-credit/