Teens visiting social networking sites or who are blogging should be educated about what not to say online. Giving out birth dates, home addresses, parents' names and school name is enough for someone to order your child's birth certificate and begin the ID theft process. Crafty criminals also can casually ease this information out of a child through a series of online conversations.

Parents should question whether athletic coaches and mentorship groups like the Girl Scouts really need a physical copy of the child's Social Security number and birth certificate. If medical information is needed, the coach should be instructed to contact the parent, says Foley.

"Ask the question," says Foley. "Why do you need this in order for my child to play youth soccer? Why do you need their Social Security number? It doesn't prove birth or age and no, I'm not giving you a copy of their birth certificate. We need to learn to say no a little bit more firmly and in more circumstances."