Transcript
Well, it’s tax season again, and if you use a professional to prepare your taxes, they’ve probably already reached out to you to request your tax information and documents. Now, in this era of identity theft, a critical question is how should you get your tax information to your preparer? Your most personal financial data can be found in your tax documents and forms. These forms include your name, your spouse’s name, your kids’ names, everybody’s social security numbers, address, and even your bank account number. Essentially everything an identity thief could ever want or need.
So how should you get those documents into the hands of your tax preparer securely? Well, we ran this question by our tax manager, Kevin McDermott, CPA, and our tax team.
Number one tip is to not email documents to your preparer. Now, if you insist on sending any tax documents or sensitive information over email, at the very least, be sure to either password-protect the files or send the documents in a password-protected zip file.
Now, obviously, you’re gonna need to give that password to your preparer, but please never include the password in the same email as the attachments. It’s kind of shocking how often people do that, but the best thing that you could do is to use your preparer’s online portal if secure, like the ones that we provide for our clients, these portals are the safest way to send documents.
Now for additional dos and don’ts from Kevin’s tax team on maintaining the security of your tax information, see the post on our website titled How Can I Get My Tax Information To My Prepare Securely. Also in that post is a rundown of other Q&As that we produced stories in which we served as sources and some news items in the note. As always, if you have any questions, please contact us. We would love to hear from you.
How can I get my tax information to my tax preparer securely?
Tax season is upon us once again, and if you use a professional to prepare your taxes, they may have reached out to request your tax information and documents. Your most personal data is on these forms and might include your name, your spouse’s name, your children’s names, everyone’s social security numbers, your address, your bank account number…essentially everything an identity thief could ever want or need.
So, how should you get those documents into the hands of your tax preparer securely, without risking your personal information getting compromised? We ran this question by our Tax Manager, Kevin McDermott, CPA, and below are some dos and don’ts for handling your tax documents:
DO: Use your tax preparer’s secure portal.
Secure online portals allow you to upload PDFs and other digital documents to your preparer and are the safest way to send documents. Additionally, portals are the most secure way for your preparer to deliver your tax return. These portals require the use of a password and are only accessible to the preparer and you. If available, use any multi-factor authentication functions.
If our firm prepares your taxes, you can upload them to the Tax Prep (2023) folder in our secure portal. Larger tax software companies, such as TurboTax, allow you to upload forms into their software – this should also be secure.
DO: Only send copies of your tax information to your preparer.
If your tax preparer asks for physical documents, keep your original tax documents and send only copies. The IRS requires tax records to be kept for up to seven years. Rather than relying on your preparer to keep everything, hold on to those originals yourself. Many tax preparers have data security policies that require shredding documents immediately after scanning and will not store physical documents.
If you prefer bringing your documents in person to your preparer, we recommend setting up an appointment so they can scan what they need and return the documents to you.
DO: Provide your preparer with your IRS Identity Protection PIN (if you have one).
If you are a confirmed victim of tax-related identity theft, or if you’ve requested one, the IRS will mail you a six-digit Identity Protection PIN (IP PIN) . The IP PIN changes annually. If you receive one, always pass it along securely to your preparer, as they will need it to e-file your return.
DON’T: Email tax information documents to your preparer!
Repeat – DO NOT email tax documents. These days, it’s seemingly too easy for someone to gain access to your email account. If you insist on sending any tax documents or sensitive information over email, be sure to either password-protect the files or send in a password-protected ZIP file. Never include the password in the same email as the attachments.
DON’T: Mail tax information to your preparer without delivery confirmation.
If you mail physical documents to your preparer, it is best to use services such as certified mail with delivery receipt requested, or FedEx with delivery confirmations. Again, you’ll want to hold on to your original documents and only mail copies.
It’s a good idea to talk to your tax preparer’s office if you have any questions about their preferred methods of document delivery. Tax documents can be a one-stop shop for identity theft, so always be sure to take the time and precautions necessary to protect your information.