Our taxes are done and filed, but some of you may wait until April 15 to get your annual deed done. While some look forward to filing their income taxes in anticipation of a refund, many remain frustrated as the deadline approaches and they must make good on what they owe the IRS. Identity thieves aren’t concerned which category you fall in as they prepare to assume your identity and make good on a return that you were or weren’t expecting.
“Tax season is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow for identity thieves,” said Todd Davis, Chairman and CEO of the industry-leading identity theft protection firm LifeLock. “Unfortunately, the current system is not built to protect consumers from tax fraud but rather is built on a first come-first served basis. Consumers need to understand the existing dangers and take immediate action to claim their rightful return before an identity thief can strike.”
There is no way to stop all identity theft, however, LifeLock offers the following tax filing tips for consumers to consider when preparing their income taxes in 2012:
FILE FAST – Your procrastination can turn into profit for an identity thief. The sooner you file, the less time an identity thief has to compromise your information and cash in on a fraudulent return.
SECURE YOURSELF – When using online tax preparation software, be certain that the Web site is secure and that you see an https:// in the URL. The “s” in the URL indicates that the server is secure and personal information is encrypted and can be transmitted safely from your computer to the end point.
SKIP THE PHISHING TRIP – Remember this: the IRS never initiates communications with taxpayers through email. Identity thieves can send fraudulently emails, posing as an employee of the IRS in an attempt to collect personally identifiable information to use in compromising your identity. This type of scam is commonly referred to as phishing. Do not respond if you should receive an email from the IRS, instead forward it to phishing@irs.gov.
For additional information on how to protect your personal information and secure your identity, LifeLock offers a series of educational guidelines online.
As a Lifelock Ambassador, my family is protected by Lifelock and we are compensated to post this information.
I admit we did wait a bit since we had to pay. I never linked it to identity theft though. Thank you for the heads-up as the info you provide to the IRS is very sensitive and I wouldn’t want any of it to fall into the wrong hands, especially if it can be avoided with a bit of precaution!
thanks for the update,,,some of this I didnt know,,,
Ignore, not only emails from he IRS, but fax, phone calls and interactions on social media on behalf of the IRS, because they are fake. Use a shredder to destroy tax related documents after tax season is over and keep the necessary ones in a safe. Only use secure websites while making online financial transactions, including online shopping. Finally, if working with an accountant, make sure he or she is trustworthy and query him or her on what measures they take to protect your information.
Hope it helps.