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Why children are 53x more likely to have their identity stolen

MOLINE- The Better Business Bureau is telling people how they can avoid identity theft in the future. Sandra Bowden joined us during WQAD News 8 at 11 Wednesday...

MOLINE- The Better Business Bureau is telling people how they can avoid identity theft in the future.

Sandra Bowden joined us during WQAD News 8 at 11 Wednesday, July 5. She says children are 53 times more likely to get their identity stolen than adults.

She says children won't often use their social security number until they're 18 years old, even though they get it when they're born. Because of that, she says a thief can steal the person's social security number and commit identity theft for years without the person even knowing it.

"It's a big business now," Bowden said Wednesday. "It's more prevalent now than it ever was before because it's so easy, and most times you don't know it's happened until it's too late."

Bowden says to never put your child's social security number on a document, even if it has a space for it. She also says to check your child's identity early because a child likely won't have a credit report, unless someone has stolen their information.

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