‘I owed £300,000 in debts that weren't mine after my identity was stolen age 6’

Renata Galvão faced the daunting task of paying off $400,000 (£295,000) in debts that weren't hers throughout her early adulthood after her identity was stolen at the tender age of six. A relative had convinced her mother to authorise this fraudulent use at the time.

"I do not blame her for a second, she was coerced and told information that was not true. I'm choosing to speak up now, so no one else has to go through what I did," she remarked as part of LSEG Risk Intelligence's 'One in Fifty' documentary film.

Renata's predicament shows a growing pattern with fraudsters exploiting children's clear financial history, causing havoc that can go unnoticed for many years. She continued: "I was only six years old when my identity was stolen and for years, I had no idea. By the time I started work, it was already too late."

In Renata's case, her identity was used to establish businesses which later failed, leaving her as the unwitting 'legal owner' saddled with the debt. She recounted visits from debt collectors during her childhood, who were astonished to learn their supposed debtor was merely a child.

Accumulating over $400,000 (£295,000) in debts that weren't hers still annihilated Renata's credit score and wreaked financial ruin. The full magnitude of her ordeal, however, was only uncovered when she reached 18.

She said: "When I turned 18, was working, opened a bank account and bought a car, everything that happened during my childhood came crashing down on me all of a sudden. I now had a financial life, and those things could be taken away from me. They froze my assets and took my savings to pay off the debts."

For many young victims, pursuing legal action against the perpetrator is the only recourse for clearing their names. But that wasn't an option for Renata because her mother, despite also being a victim, could have faced charges due to her involvement. Renata, alongside her mother, spent ten years repaying the debt until she was 28 instead.

Alarmingly, an LSEG Risk Intelligence report indicates that child identity theft is an escalating problem, not an isolated case like Renata's. Identity theft has increased by 13% since last March, with the US Federal Trade Commission revealing a 40% surge between 2021 and 2024.

To shed light on this disturbing trend, Renata shares her story in the newly released documentary One in Fifty. The film aims to raise awareness among consumers and financial organisations of the severity and prevalence of child identity theft in the US.

Now a risk and compliance professional at LSEG, Renata commented: "Globally, there are entire systems in place to protect children from physical or sexual abuse from a family member. But no such system exists for protecting children from financial abuse. No one should have a say in my financial life other than myself."

David White, Global Head of Product & Data, LSEG Risk Intelligence, cautioned: "Since Renata's ordeal over twenty years ago, fraudsters have become more sophisticated, using AI and social engineering to target the most vulnerable.

"Children are being targeted because they know our systems weren't designed to spot them. This has to change. No one organisation can fix this alone - it's going to take the entire industry working together to protect the most vulnerable among us."

LSEG Risk Intelligence is calling on financial institutions to adopt new safeguards to shield customers from the severe consequences of identity theft and fraud, as outlined in their latest report. The recommendations include introducing checks to confirm a person's age and identity, along with multi-factor authentication for individuals lacking a credit history.

The report also notes that 25% of children will have their identity stolen, at an average age of just eight, and 73% of victims know the perpetrator. The majority of these victims face financial fraud being lodged against them, but a small percentage are also left with a criminal record for offences they didn’t commit.