AG Nessel Urges Consumers to Be Aware of Warning Signs on Child Identity Theft Awareness Day

LANSING – In recognition of National Child Identity Theft Awareness Day, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel is reissuing her consumer alerts on identity theft protection and warning signs. Identity theft occurs when someone uses another person's personal information, such as Social Security numbers, credit card details, or other sensitive data, without permission. Bad actors can use a child’s identity to open fraudulent accounts that may go unnoticed for years until the victim tries to use their credit for the first time, making them particularly vulnerable.

“Kids and their families rarely, if ever, check their credit, which can make them prime targets for identity theft,” said Attorney General Nessel. “By staying vigilant and taking steps to protect their data, parents can help keep their children’s personal and sensitive information safe and secure from bad actors.”

Warning signs of child identity theft include:

• A child has a credit report. Most children will not have one.
• A child receives bills or credit cards for services or accounts they and their family are unfamiliar with.
• The child’s family is contacted by debt collectors for services or accounts connected with the child that they are not familiar with.
• The child’s family gets notice that their child’s information was compromised by a data breach.

If parents receive an overdue notice for a card for their child, don’t ignore it or think it is a mistake. Investigate, find out what is going on, and take immediate steps to correct the issue, including filing police reports for identity theft and reaching out to the Department of Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Team for assistance.

Attorney General Nessel recommends parents also use the following tips to help reduce the risk of child identity theft:

• Don’t disclose a child’s personal information unless they know who they're giving it to, for what purpose, and how it will be protected.
• Secure their Social Security card and sensitive documents in a safe place at home.
• Keep a secure master list or photocopies of important identification and account numbers, including the phone numbers of the customer service fraud departments of card issuers.
• Create strong passwords and keep them in a safe location. Never keep passwords or PINs near cards or documents identifying the account to which they belong.
• Follow best practices online. Only connect to secure websites through secure internet connections; use two- factor authentication that requires the user to enter a one-time code each time they log into their account; update sharing and firewall settings; and consider using a virtual private network (VPN) if they use a public server or free Wi-Fi.
• Use and maintain anti-virus software and a firewall.
• Watch what they post on social media. Identity thieves are skilled at piecing together information from a variety of sources. Do not post personal information of children in public forums.

Parents can also consider locking their child’s credit. All three credit reporting agencies have special procedures in place to run manual searches on minors. If the child is under 16, a parent can request a free credit freeze, also known as a security freeze, to make it harder for someone to open new accounts in their child's name. The freeze stays in place until they tell the credit bureaus to remove it. Minors who are 16 or 17 can request and remove a security freeze themselves. To activate a credit freeze, contact each of the three credit bureaus.

• Equifax: Contact Equifax for more information
• Experian: Contact Experian for more information
• TransUnion: Contact TransUnion for more information

To assist residents, Attorney General Nessel launched the Michigan Identity Theft Support System, which helps consumers seeking to restore their stolen identities, including children. To file a complaint with the Attorney General, or get additional information, contact:

Consumer Protection Team
P.O. Box 30213
Lansing, MI 48909
517-335-7599
Fax: 517-241-3771
Toll-free: 877-765-8388
Online complaint form

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