We wanted to share this great article from the Wall Street Journal, “New on Parents’ To-Do List: Checking Children’s Credit History”. In it you will find some important resources for protecting your children from identity theft. Experian estimates that identity theft will affect one in four children before they become an adult. It’s important to stay on top of this, as you don’t want to find out there is an issue with credit just as your child goes to apply for a student loan.
While the entire article is worth a read, below are the Steps for Parents the authors outline once the new law goes into effect on September 21st:
STEPS FOR PARENTS
- Go to https://identitytheft.gov/Steps, scroll down and click on the Child Identity Theft section, under Special Forms of Identity Theft.
- That section has instructions on how to find out if your child has a credit report. Most young children shouldn’t have credit files.
- The webpage includes contact information for credit agencies and how to freeze credit.
- Some experts recommend parents create a credit file for their children and freeze it, because the system is built on the idea that the first person to create a file is that person.
- Keep the record of freezes in a safe place, so the child or a guardian can find it when needed.
Click below to read the full article:
