3-Year-Old Girl In New Jersey Receives Federal Jury Duty Letter, Raising Red Flags About Child Identity Theft – CBS New York

RAMSEY, N.J. (CBSNewYork) — A New Jersey household is asking how a 3-year-old will get a letter for federal jury responsibility.

As CBS2’s Jessica Layton reviews, it seems, it could possibly be a purple flag for youngster identity theft, and it might be taking place greater than all of us understand.

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Whether or not she’s making dinner together with her mother, capturing hoops together with her huge brother or taking part in with a brand new pal, Madison Behrmann is a great, sassy little 3-year-old who’s sure to be a hit when she’s older.

However she’s nonetheless years away from being eligible for, say, jury responsibility, regardless of a letter she acquired from U.S. District Court docket.

“Asking her to fill out a questionnaire for federal jury responsibility in Newark,” mother Laura Behrmann stated.

The letter says Madison’s identify had been drawn by random choice from the voter’s registration. Clearly, Behrmann by no means registered her toddler to vote.

“It’s a complete mess, and we nonetheless do not know, nor can anyone inform me, how they acquired her identify,” she stated. “Did someone steal her id? Did someone vote in her identify? Is there someone impersonating her on the market, bank cards, taking out a mortgage in her identify?”

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So how does this occur? Specialists say it’s fundamental sharing of data, like deal with or social safety quantity, and having that data get into the unsuitable palms. Kids are focused the identical approach as adults.

“It could occur for years underneath your nostril and big injury being finished by the point that you just discovered,” stated cyber safety professional Ian Marlow. “One of many very first steps that they need to do is contact a credit score company because the guardian of a minor … and do one thing known as locking their credit score.”

Marlow says locking credit score can stop the opening of any new account. He says it is best to run common free credit score reviews on your self and your youngster and shield your youngster’s social safety quantity and birthdate data as you’d your individual.

The Behrmanns filed a police report and are ready for credit score reviews on each of their children. Now, they only must get Madison off that jury responsibility listing.

“She is likely to be actually good at it, I don’t know, however she is going to want an grownup to take her to the lavatory, so you already know,” Behrmann stated, laughing.

Discovering the lighter aspect whereas attending to the underside of a severe scenario.

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A state senator checked into the scenario and informed the household the kid is definitely not registered to vote, so the thriller as to how the courts acquired her identify and data continues.