Foster care privacy breaches span more than a decade

Victoria's child-protection agency has been breaching the privacy of traumatised children and foster carers across the state for more than a decade and quietly paying them off or upgrading security at their homes if they find out about it.


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Social worker charged with misconduct, identity theft

A state social worker is facing official misconduct and theft of identity charges after allegedly posing as another social worker to see her ex-boyfriend’s kids.
 

More >> Social worker charged with misconduct, identity theft

Ex-CPS worker accused of identity theft

A former Child Protective Services worker is facing felony identity-theft charges for opening credit-card accounts with information stolen from at least six people with whom he worked custody cases, Brazoria police said.

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Credit checks slow to come for Georgia foster youth vulnerable to fraud

Credit checks slow to come for Georgia foster youth vulnerable to fraud

Dozens of teens in Georgia’s foster care system may have had their identities stolen.

Experts: Michigan's Foster Children Vulnerable to ID Theft

Experts: Michigan's Foster Children Vulnerable to ID Theft

Identity thieves don't discriminate when it comes to the age of their victims, and experts say foster children are a prime target for fraud.

Bill Would Protect Foster Children From ID Theft

Bill Would Protect Foster Children From ID Theft

The state would run credit checks on children in foster care until they’re 21, not 18, under legislation awaiting a vote in a House committee. Angela Aufdemberge is president of a girls home called Vista Maria. She says she’s seen, time and time again, foster children having to manage the repercussions of having their identity stolen.

State rep: DHHS should track foster kids’ credit

State rep: DHHS should track foster kids’ credit

TeLesha Monroe didn’t know her identity had been stolen until, as part of a program to transition from foster care to independence, she was denied a bank account because of her bad credit.

Legislation needed to protect foster kids' personal funds

Legislation needed to protect foster kids' personal funds

Our state foster care agencies are apparently so underfunded that they are taking resources from abused and neglected children. The agencies are taking control over foster children's Social Security benefits (when the children are disabled or have deceased parents) and using the children's funds to repay foster care costs. In other words, Maryland is requiring the children to pay for their own care.

Identity thieves prey on foster children

Identity thieves prey on foster children

Texas foster children are the latest targets of identity theft.

Brandon and Shanna Wheeler, a San Antonio couple who have adopted eight foster children, said the scam most often happens around tax time.

Preying on the Vulnerable: Foster Youth Face High Risk of Identity Theft

Preying on the Vulnerable: Foster Youth Face High Risk of Identity Theft

Children in foster care are at greater risk of becoming victims of identity theft and entering adulthood with their credit already in shambles, experts say.

Children in foster care vulnerable to identity theft

Children in foster care vulnerable to identity theft

Identity theft is a serious crime. Child identity theft happens when someone uses a minor’s personal information to commit fraud. A minor’s identity may be stolen for the purposes of getting a job, government benefits, medical care, utilities, car loans, or a mortgage. Avoiding, discovering, and undoing the damage resulting from the theft of a young person’s identity can be a challenge.

How to Protect a Foster Child from ID Theft

How to Protect a Foster Child from ID Theft

Foster kids are at greater risk for identity theft than the general population because more people have access to their private information. Their families may be cash-strapped and view the young person's clean credit as an easy fix to a financial problem.

Identity Thieves Target More Foster Children

Identity Thieves Target More Foster Children


When Christina Ives of Pacific Beach turned 16 years old, she wanted was a job. It was something she really needed at the time. Her father was homeless. He mother was an alcoholic, and she was in foster care. Ives applied to a number of places and landed a position with Mervyn's. Just days before her first day of school, she received a letter that she had been terminated. Her employers told Ives her social security number wasn't her own.

Governor Signs Bill Requiring Credit Check to Protect Children Aging Out of Foster Care from Identity Theft

Governor Signs Bill Requiring Credit Check to Protect Children Aging Out of Foster Care from Identity Theft

With two young people who aged out of foster care and experienced identity theft and credit report issues at his side, Governor Markell signed into law today a measure that helps protect them and others like them from moving into adulthood with no knowledge of their credit report information.  Effective January 1, 2013,  children preparing to age out of foster care will, by law, receive a credit history report to protect them from identity theft.

Foster Children Struggle To Recover From Identity Theft

Foster Children Struggle To Recover From Identity Theft

"Burdened Beginnings" is a series examining the problem of child identity theft. Other stories in the series can be found here.

New Law Protects Foster Children From Identity Theft

New Law Protects Foster Children From Identity Theft

Dee Saint Franc, 21, of Providence, R.I., stands for a portrait in front of family photos in her home. Saint Franc left the Rhode Island foster care system at age 18 eager to start life on her own. She went to a Verizon store to buy a phone and instead learned that someone had used her identity to rack up $3,000 worth of delinquent bills at Verizon dating back to 1998.

Law on foster care identity theft praised in RI

Law on foster care identity theft praised in RI

Rhode Island child welfare advocates are praising a new law co-sponsored by U.S. Rep. Jim Langevin that aims to protect foster children from identity theft.

Foster Youth ID

Lawmaker tries to protect foster children.

Former CPS worker sentenced in ID theft case

Former CPS worker sentenced in ID theft case

A former employee with Children's Protective Services has been sentenced to prison for her part in an identity theft scheme.

Langevin bill aims to curb foster child ID theft

Langevin bill aims to curb foster child ID theft

A congressman from Rhode Island wants state governments to do more to protect children in foster care from identity theft.