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Identity theft does not choose the people it will victimize next and it can be as simple as a thief obtaining your Social Security Number, your account numbers and other basic personal information. Child identity theft is now becoming prevalent because thieves find it easier to access. If you want to keep this from happening to you, here are tips to avoid child identity theft.

1. It is important to teach your child the importance of taking care of their belongings. Thieves gain access to valuable information whenever someone leaves their wallet or credit cards unattended. Tell your child to close their bags and to check all of their items before leaving a certain area. You should also tell them not to leave important documents anywhere nor should they throw it straight to the trash. A lot of hackers get their information from the trash cans.
2. Encourage your child not to log in their bank accounts if they are using a public internet connection. Believe it or not, these people can find ways to get into your account with the use of the public wi-fi.
3. Scammers and thieves can also get into your phone or laptop by sending you emails that will obtain valuable information when opened. Most kids are unaware of this and they end up opening email scams. There are also phone scams wherein a person asks for your name and other important information claiming that you won a jackpot or a big prize. Inform your kid about this so that they can avoid opening online scams from now on.
4. Encourage your child to create stronger passwords for their accounts. Most people use easy to guess passwords such as their last name, their birthdays etc. Some of this information can be obtained in social networking sites and it makes it easier for the thieves to get it. A strong password should consist of letter and numbers or even a few symbols. Using capital letters will also help in making it stronger.
5. Passwords accounts name and numbers are not to be shared with others. Make it clear to your children that they are not to disclose any vital information to anyone. You should also keep track of their social network accounts because most kids nowadays put their numbers and email addresses for everyone to see.
6. As a parent, it is your duty to keep all the documents and personal information secure. It would be best to keep it in a safe that only you would know where it is. You should protect the files in your computer or your laptop. You can do this by installing a firewall and antivirus software to keep malicious threats at bay. Do not forget to update this regularly so that you will be guaranteed with full protection all the time.
7. Get your 3 bureau credit reports checked regularly. The only way to see if you or your child’s identity is being compromised is by getting a copy of your credit report from the three credit agencies such as Experian, Equifax and Trans Union. It is advisable to get a copy of your credit report regularly so that you will be able to track all of the transactions in it.
8. Most kids forget to log out from their accounts especially if they’re just using their mobile phone. What they don’t realize is that every time they leave their accounts logged in, they are more susceptible to identity theft. Tell them to log in their accounts from their phones for safety purposes.

Don’t forget to check your report because it will let you see if there are fishy transactions under you or your child’s name. You can avoid identity theft from happening to you and your child by following these tips. Having someone your use your identity without your knowledge can be a nuisance but if you take care of your personal information then you have nothing to worry about.