Tax Tme = Identity Theft Time

March 10, 2008

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It’s tax time in North America, which means that documents are flying left right and center with your personal information on them. It’s prime scam time as well.

As if paying Uncle Sam wasn’t bad enough; now we need to worry about this as well.

Protect Yourself

Here are some things to be aware of at tax time.

• Shred It - This is pretty standard stuff but make sure you shred anything you don’t need. You’ll be surprised what has your Social Security Number on it
• Lock Down Your Computer - If you file taxes online or do your taxes on your computer, you’re going to have files sitting around with all your tax information on them, possibly including a nice handy PDF of your entire tax return.  Make sure you have your anti-virus, anti-spyware, and firewall software up to date and be careful what you share on P2P networks
• Lock Down Your Paperwork - Keep tax files locked up somewhere and watch your mail every day and grab it as soon as possible.  When you’re mailing your tax stuff, mail it right from the Post Office if possible
• Watch Your Accountant - Be careful with who prepares and files your taxes.  Ask them what steps they take to keep your information secure, and be careful of phishing sites when uploading your return to file online

Scammer Spammers

A common scam at tax time is to send emails to people saying they are from the IRS asking for your information as part of an “investigation”. The IRS will never ever send you an email asking for your Social Security Number, and will not ask for your banking info for your refund. Be careful and use common sense.

Any other good tax time scams that you have come across? (Other than, you know, tax time itself…).

The Identity Theft Resource Center has other great tax-time tips.

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