Cyber Defense eMagazine May 2019

53% of them revealed their contact details.
11% met a stranger personally.
15% tried to meet.
6% shared their address.
21% spoke on phone.
30% texted a stranger.
Does anyone want their kids to share any piece of information or even talk to strangers online?
Nobody wants any such thing to happen with their kids; it’s our duty to provide a safer and secure future
to our kids, keeping them away from increasing risks and threats.
There are so many threats lurking for kids in cyberspace, right from bullying to ransomware, but the most
credit goes to identity theft.
Just imagine, what if your kid is in foreclosure on a property in another state.
Your Kid’s Online Identity Holds his/her Future - So, Don’t Risk it!
Why I am saying this, you will understand with the results of a study “CHILD IDENTITY THEFT”
conducted by Research Power; it was conducted back in 2011, but still relatable.
10.2% or 4,311 of the children in the report had their Social Security number used by others – it
is 51 times higher than the rate for adults.
The largest fraud of $725,000 was against a 16-year-old girl.
The youngest victim was just five months old; 826 were between the ages of 6 to 10, 303 were
under the age of five, 1212 were between the ages of 11 to 14, while 1849 were between 15 to
18 years of age.
This is not enough, even your kid’s identity can also be used to sell and purchase homes and
automobiles, open credit card accounts, obtain a driver’s license, and for secure Employment.
You must be thinking how could an unused social security number be beneficial to hackers? Find the
reasons below; you will be surprised!
What Happened with Unused Social Security Numbers?
Unused Social Security numbers are more valuable than one can think of, thieves’ pair them with any
name and birth date; making it useful for illegal immigration and other organized crimes.
A child’s identity is blank with the least discoverability; since the child doesn't use it for an extended time
and even parents also take it lightly, that’s why it becomes an easy target.
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