LifeLock

The records show that Timothy Welland Hyde was born prematurely on February 3, 1976. He died nine days later and was buried close to his two brothers, both of whom were stillborn. His short life made him the perfect target for identity theft.

In 1992, Joseph D. Bonanno, of northeast Ohio, began using the baby’s name and Social Security number. He used the identity when he married and when his own two children were born. He used it when he established his furniture store, when he got his stockbroker’s license, both times he filed for bankruptcy and when he got his five DUIs.

And he was still using the baby’s name last Christmas when he roughed up his wife. He was arrested and fingerprinted that night, and that’s when his fraudulent identity began to unravel.

Bonanno stole Timothy Hyde’s identity to escape charges of felony larceny placed against him in Massachusetts, 1988.

No one knows exactly how many child ID theft victims there are, but a 2008 study by Javelin Strategy and Research found that, out of 500 children, 5% had credit reports, meaning someone used their information to apply for—and possibly receive—credit.

Children’s identities are especially vulnerable to ID thieves because the crime isn’t usually discovered until the victim has grown into a young adult denied a job, a lease or loan because the criminal has racked up years of bad debt using the child’s personal information.

LifeLock was the first identity theft protection company to provide services for children. Visit LifeLock.com for more information about how they can help protect you and your family.