"There's no 2morality here that they're not going to do that to kids. Kids are just as much of a target, if not 3more so."
According to the Federal Trade Commission, about 2% of U.S. identity theft reports in 2025 so far have involved children under age 19. And just like adults, kids are at risk when 4data breaches 5compromise things like Social Security numbers or medical information.
Eva Velasquez, CEO of the nonprofit Identity Theft Resource Center, says many cases of child ID theft go 6undetected for years because they're not making regular transactions like adults.
"One of the reasons that children's identities are so 7appealing to the 8bad actors is because kids don't 9engage in the world the same way adults do."
The FTC says if a child is underage 16, request a free 10credit freeze to make it harder for someone to open new accounts in their name.
The major credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, all have instructions.
Velasquez says it can't be completed online, but the effort is worth the 11peace of mind.
"It does take a little bit of 12legwork. You not only have to provide the documents in a different way, you also have to 13demonstrate that you have the legal authority to make decisions 14on behalf of this child."
Parents who believe their child's information has been compromised should check if their child has a credit report. Since it's uncommon under the age 18, that could be a 15red flag for 16fraud.
