Whether it’s grade school or college, your kids’ risk for identity theft increases when they go to school. So when you’re stocking up on school supplies this summer, make sure your kids are protected against identity theft by enrolling them in LifeLock’s identity theft protection plan.
For the younger set, the risk originates with the after-school and sports programs that require a lot of personal information for registration. And the university that uses Social Security numbers as student identifiers is one of the biggest sources of information for identity thieves.
Just like your identity can be stolen, so can your kids’. Think of all the forms you fill out at the start of the new school year. If you’re a working parent, chances are you have to enroll your child in before and after-school programs. And, of course there are all the release forms you have to fill out so they can play football or go on field trips. Do you know where those forms are filed? Do you know who has access to them, or what steps are taken to keep them from falling into the wrong hands?
Identity thieves know that when they use a child’s name and Social Security number to set up fraudulent accounts, it will probably be years before the crime is discovered. Most often, the crime comes to light when the poor kid is turned down for a first job, a first car, or for college financing.
College students are practically used as bait for identity thieves when colleges print their student IDs with Social Security numbers on them. And even if your college student attends a school that has moved away from that practice, there are still plenty of opportunities for their identity to be stolen. Just like they left stuff lying around at home, they’re going to do it at college. The dorm room or apartment they share away from home has more traffic than the main intersection of their hometown. And the people coming and going may not always be as trustworthy as they appear to a kid away from home for the first time.
When they were babies you were diligent about vaccinations and car seats. You taught them all about stranger danger and safe driving practices. Now it’s time to offer them another kind of protection. Make sure your kids don’t become victims of identity theft by signing them up with LifeLock.
Right now, you can enroll your grade-school aged child for as little as $2.25 a month. College students can have complete protection for only $9 a month.
No matter how big they get they’ll always be your babies, and they’ll always know they can count on you.
This entry was posted
on Monday, July 14th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
and is filed under LifeLock for back to school.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.
