Important Child Identification
Tools
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| "No
program or identification tool will keep children safe
or prevent abductions 100 percent of the time. Parents,
guardians, and members of the community must all work together
to help ensure children will be protected and have access
to help if they need it. Child safety is all our responsibilities.” — Nancy
McBride, NCMEC’s National Safety Director |
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Parents, guardians, and other family members are constantly searching
for advice about how to keep children safer. To help, we’ve singled
out some common areas of interest regarding precautionary child identification
and safety measures.
NCMEC strongly recommends that a child’s current digital photograph
and description be quickly available to the parent or guardian at all
times, in easily and quickly transmitted digital format.
Photo Identification (ID)
Dental X-Rays, Charting, and Bite Impressions
Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA)
Fingerprints
Medical Reports
Child Safety Programs
For more information about these and other safety topics in specific
situations, please contact NCMEC at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678).
Photo Identification (ID)
Families should have current photographs of their children. These
photographs can often be obtained free-of-charge or for a nominal fee
from a number of sources.
The photograph should be a full-face shot in color, and capture the
way children really look. Photographs should be taken at least every
six months and kept in a safe and readily accessible place.
In addition to the photograph, parents and guardians should also have
a written description of their children. The description should include:
- Hair color;
- Eye color;
- Weight;
- Height;
- Date of Birth; and
- Unique physical attributes such as eyeglasses, braces, or piercings.
Dentition
Dental X-rays, professional dental charting, and bite impressions
(tooth prints) are all useful in making identifications but will not
help to find a missing child. Parents and guardians should update dental
charts every 2 years until children are 18. Parents and guardians may
also choose to have bite impressions made using Styrofoam®. Only
a trained dental professional should take the impression.
Please check with your family dentist to determine if this service
is offered. Dentition may last for many years and can withstand elements
such as fire. This sample should be stored in a safe and readily accessible
place.
Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA)
DNA is a key element of what families should have on hand for their
children’s
identification. Like fingerprints and dentition, DNA will not help find
a missing child but is used to identify someone. DNA has become the “gold
standard” for all identification matters.
NCMEC strongly encourages parents and guardians to take a DNA sample
of their children as a precautionary measure in case their children
become missing. No one should store DNA except parents and guardians.
Fingerprints
Fingerprints are used for identification. They should be taken by
a trained professional and recorded on a paper stock that will be usable
for loading in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National
Crime Information Center, if your child should become missing.
As with all of these methods of identification, fingerprinting can
be taken and stored at little or no cost. Retailers, supermarket
chains, and other companies often provide opportunities for parents
and guardians to have one or more of these identification tools taken
for their children. Only parents or guardians should store these
items or test results of their children.
Medical Reports
Families should know where their children’s medical records are
located. Medical records such as X-rays, permanent scars, blemishes,
birthmarks, or broken bones can be helpful in identifying a recovered
child. Ask your family doctor if those records can be easily accessed
if needed.
Child Safety
Effective child-safety programs are ones children will enjoy, understand,
and ultimately help to change children’s behavior. The fundamental
idea of prevention education is that children with self-confidence,
grounded in safety competence and high self-esteem, are less vulnerable
targets for victimization.1 NCMEC
offers many resources to
assist parents and guardians.
1Guidelines for Programs to Reduce Child Victimization: A Resource
for Communities When Choosing a Program to Teach Personal Safety to
Children. Alexandria, Virginia: National Center for Missing & Exploited
Children, 1999, page 4.
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