Identity Theft
Once a child starts giving out their personal information, there's a greater chance for identity theft. Identity theft is when someone uses personal information, such as your name, social security number, bank account or credit card number to ruin someone else's credit.
They'll go to different places, such as department stores, banks and either charge items on the credit card or try to withdraw money from your bank account. By the time the victim finds out about it, the thief has already racked up a mountain of debt for which the victim will be blamed for.
There are different ways a person can commit identity theft. Some of them include using spy ware, phishing, and hacking into someone's website. Parents must be vigilant about protecting their child's identity. When it comes to identity theft, the thief doesn't care how old the victim is, as long as they can get away with fraud, they'll do it.
If the parents find out that their child is the victim of identity theft, there are things they can do to lessen the severity, if caught early.
Even though your child may be young, check with one or all of the three credit bureaus about having a fraud alert placed on their credit report. This notice advises creditors to contact the person before anything new is opened in their name. This is to prevent further fraud.
When a fraud alert is placed in the file, the person can get a copy of their credit report. The important thing to look at is any discrepancies or accounts that weren't opened by the parent or the child.
The parents should contact any company for which they or their child has not opened an account with. Explain to them what happened and submit follow-up letters to the companies. If you have any related documents, send those as well.
Parents should file a police report with the local law enforcement agency. The report will assist you when you contact the creditors and let them know what happened. Parents should also report their findings to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission).
Spyware And Malware
Spyware removal software is another program that should be installed on computers. Not only will it help with children, but it will help parents as well.
Since most children are naturally curious, they will download things like free software, free video and online games. Most of the time, children don't realized that spyware is attached to these free downloads.
Spyware is a program that gets into your computer when you download free stuff. This program is so sneaky it can tell how many keystrokes you're typing, what passwords you're typing and other things that are supposed to be secure
In addition to viruses and spy ware, there is also malware. Malware or malicious software, contains programs that duplicate themselves without you knowing it. Malware has viruses and spy ware.
Criminals who want access to a child's information will create different kinds of websites, downloads and other things to lure your child so they would be interested in going to those websites.
What happens is these particular websites have enough security software to make them safe. The malware that is installed can be used to get a child's personal information and spam their e-mail box. They will also use it as a form of identity theft.
&bullParents should check the following for signs of malware on their computer:
&bullIf the computer isn't working properly, getting constant error messages or is slowing down.
&bullThe computer won't shut off or restart when commanded to.
&bullThe computer shows web pages that you didn't want.
&bullReceive lots of pop-up ads; they show up when no one's on the internet.
These may be signs that malware in lurking on their computer. If that is the case, parents should immediately halt any online activity that includes going to a secure site. This would include user names, passwords or other private information. If the malware lingers, your information could be getting in the hands of identity thieves.
Make sure the computer has all the security software needed. If not, parents will need to get something as soon as possible. Some of the internet service providers offer free internet security software when you purchase their monthly service.
The security software you get should at least have an anti-virus and anti-spy ware virus, especially since these elements are what malware are comprised of. Parents should make sure that they download the automatic updates and conduct scans on a regular basis.
Parents should beware of ads that pop up claiming to have found malware, spy ware or viruses on their computers. Those are nothing more than a scam used to spread more malware on your computer. Don't fall for it.
If after you conduct the initial scan you still find malware on the computer, try running a second scan. If that doesn't work, the parents may have to seek assistance from a technician.
Once the computer is repaired and back running again, think about how these problems can be avoided for future use. There are some steps parents can take to minimize the chance of malware coming back on their computer.
If your child is using the computer, make sure they know the precautions regarding getting malware on the computer:
Downloading should only be done from safe and trusted websites. Free stuff on the web is tempting to download, but that's where most if not all of the viruses, spy ware and malware come from. The child should not download free games, file sharing programs or free toolbars. All of these are candidates for having spy ware in them.
If the child receives a link to an e-mail that they're not familiar with, they should not click on it. They should only click on links that they know about. If the child clicks on an unfamiliar link, they could be subject to automatically downloading malware unbeknownst to them. Even attachments sent via e-mail can contain malware.
Parents should let their child know about malware and what it can do to the computer. The child should be advised not to download any free programs or games that can contain malware.
They should also let the child know that malware can be costly to repair if it gets that far. The child will probably think twice about downloading free stuff from the internet
Steve Cownley
