Never Too Young for Identity Theft

New York Times reports on the woes of Gabriel Jimenez, 25, and a valid U.S. citizen. For almost half of his life, he has beeh sharing his identity with an illegal immigrant.

His mother, Jeri Marks, discovered the problem when he was 11, after filing taxes for work he did as a child model. The I.R.S. informed her that someone had already filed their tax return for her son's social security number.

After a few years, she requested her son's file with the I.R.S. and found an illegal who was using the number.

At first, the illegal tried to bribe Ms. Marks by giving his tax refund in exchange for using the SSN. She refused. But it would seem the illegal kept on using it.

In short, Gabriel was pretty much screwed. Over the years, he made some success with the I.R.S. and Social Security. Yet he still had problems. When he went to Northwestern University, he was denied phone service, gas and electricity, because he had already accounts. At 20, when he went to set up a bank account, he was denied because someone opened up an I.R.A. using his info. When he attempted to obtain auto insurance, he faced a similar roadblock.

Today, he got most of his credit report cleaned up, but his rating is ruined. Now he can managed to rent an apartment with utilities, but if he wanted to purchase a home or vehicle, it would probably take months of paperwork and in the end, he may get the financing, but with a high interest rate.

Check out the Identity Theft Resource Center on various types of theft and what victims should do when their identity is stolen.

For those entering Case for their first year as well as upperclass students, you should get a copy of your credit report to ensure that your data is correct.