Toddler Has Identity Stolen - Twice In 22 Months

[matcom]

<snip>

FORT WAYNE, Ind. --At 22 months old, Jabriona Terry is a little young to have her own phone. But her mother discovered her daughter's name listed in a phone book and soon realized an acquaintance had used the girl's Social Security number to set up the phone service.

It wasn't the first time the girl has been victimized by identity theft, her mother said.

Someone else using her name and Social Security number listed her on his tax return, claiming her as a dependent to get a larger tax refund, she said.

LaShonda Terry wants charges filed against the person who used her daughter's identity to get a phone. But police say it is difficult to do.

There is nothing unusual about what happened to LaShonda and Jabriona, police say.

"We get those by the thousands," said Karl Niblick, a deputy chief with the Fort Wayne Police Department.

Utility companies are a particularly popular way to use someone else's identity.

People get someone else's name, birth date and Social Security number and turn on telephones, electricity or gas service and then never pay the bills. When the power gets turned off, they get a new name and number and get new service, often in a new home, police said.

Social Security numbers have become a form of currency, sometimes every bit as good as a fistful of money to buy drugs, Niblick said. The drug dealer can sell the name and number or use it himself for anything from utility service to credit cards, he said.

Another reason Terry has not gotten a response is that technically she and her daughter are not victims of fraud because there was no financial loss, Niblick said.

The phone company has suffered financial losses, so unless it files charges, nothing will be done, he said.

http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2005/07/18/toddler_has_identity_stolen_twice?mode=PF

[bridgit]

1. poor kid...

another couple months & she'll be yanked into the poor farm for skipping on a condo in boca raton :shrug:

[REP]

2. That Name's a Crime!

And no, her credit's fine as toddlers cannot legally enter into contracts; her mother may be on the hook for handing out this info to "acquaintances" (yeah, right - casual acquaintances have access to my personal data).