The youngest victims of identity theft are the hardest hit. On yesterday's North Bay Report, a Petaluma couple who've spent two years fighting identity theft shared their story. The worst part they say, is that their kids' information was stolen, too. Today we learn why young people are especially vulnerable to this crime.

Anne Madrid, of the Hayward Police Department and the Identity Theft Council, says that thieves are accessing private information in more ways than ever.

About 10 million Americans every year are victims of identity theft, and Sonoma County and the Bay Area see more than their fair share of these cases. In this first of a two-part series, KRCB's Danielle Venton speaks with identity theft victims and law enforcement to learn how to fight and prevent this crime.

Inspector Anne Madrid, of the Hayward Police Department and the Identity Theft Council shares what to do if you receive a suspicious call from a debt collector.

If you receive a suspicious call from an existing line of credit, make sure the call is legitimate, advises Madrid. Here's how:

American Badgers--tenacious, rarely seen creatures--have found friends in Petaluma. For the past 12 years members of the non-profit Paula Lane Action Network have sought to protect an 11-acre plot of land on West Petaluma’s Paula Lane. This spring they got the help they needed, a matching grant from the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District to purchase the land and dedicate it as a natural preserve.

Badgers are important predators, hunting rats, moles, gophers and California ground squirrels. Their burrows also provide homes for other animals such as the California tiger salamander, red-legged frogs, burrowing owls and foxes. However their habitat, generally hilly grasslands, has been dramatically impacted by development and their populations are declining.

Possibly because of their rare and elusive nature, badgers aren’t often in the public mind. The political will to protect them is thin to nonexistent, says Susan Kirks of the Paula Lane Action Network. Their new preserve in Petalumal, Kirks hopes,will help school kids and the public learn to love their hardy, little-seen neighbors.

Images: 1) Danielle Venton for KRCB; 2) Courtesy of Andy LaCasse, taken near Skillman Lane in Petaluma.

When a police officer approaches, it's easy to assume you are in trouble. The Sebastopol Police Department is trying to change that. Last summer they started a program to reward law-abiding citizens, especially the young ones.

At the local skate park, officer Dennis Colthurst hands out free movie passes to thank kids for wearing their helmets. (Images: Danielle Venton for KRCB.)