Identity thieves look to target children

The younger generations are at risk as much as adults when it comes to online identity theft.

That comes after McAfee created an Identity Theft Guide for Dell that reported 54 per cent of all income tax liability and damaged credit fraud was committed against children under six years old(1).

Why are children at risk?

Dell reports that there are often many years of illegal activity available to scammers when they steal a child's identity(1). The first time people often discover that they have been a victim of identity theft and fraud is when they attempt to open a line of credit late into their teenage years(1).

McAfee's Net Losses: Estimating the Global Cost of Cybercrime report states that illegal attacks cost the global economy more than AU$550 billion(2). The industry is large and growing, and with so much online access to details of children's sensitive information there is a real need to make sure the entire family is protected, no matter how young some members are.

If a young person finds that they have been the victim of many years of identity fraud, then a long and malicious bad credit history could be revealed that is not without difficulty to remove(1). In terms of children being defrauded for tax liability purposes, once the theft has been discovered it may be that the child owes many years' worth of income tax payments(1).

In both of these cases, the attacker's theft of children's personal information can be avoidable, and knowing how to protect the whole family could save them money in the long run.

Privacy is the key

Educating children about the benefits of online privacy is a significant step towards making sure their identities are protected from hackers. The more information a thief has on one particular person, the more able they are to steal an identity, according to the Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network(3). While a child under the age of six is still probably too young to be on the internet by themselves, however, it is key that the parents and family do not publicly share large amounts of personal information about them.

Keeping Facebook profiles private and not responding to suspicious emails or phone calls with information including a child's name, date of birth and even bank account details are just two simple ways to ensure the safety of your child's identity.

Ensuring children are aware of how their online activity can be used maliciously is also important, including when playing games and browsing social media, as suggested by the Australian Office of the Children's eSafety Commissioner(4).

To help keep track of your family's sensitive information, contact Identity Watch and learn how its services could assist your loved ones.

1. Dell. Accessed February 2016.

2. McAfee. Accessed February 2016.

3. Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network. Accessed February 2016.

4. eSafety. Accessed February 2016.