security — February 09, 2015

Don't Blame TurboTax

by James Stork

protect your identity

I'm sure you’ve heard the news: The Minnesota Department of Revenue temporarily stopped accepting state tax returns that were prepared using Intuit’s TurboTax product. 

Intuit is taking some bad press over this, but this is not a software problem. That’s right. Don’t blame TurboTax. The problem is identity theft and it can happen to anyone, regardless of whether the return is filed through an off-the-shelf product, online tax software, or a professional tax preparer. Fraudsters steal or purchase personal taxpayer information every day, and most victims are not even aware of it until they file their tax returns. Nobody in the tax filing process is immune to it, and no taxpayer is completely safe from it.

Like Intuit and other software companies, 1040.com is expending many resources—personnel, time, and money—to combat tax fraud and identity theft. Software companies, government revenue agencies, and law enforcement agencies are all challenged with combating this epidemic.

We will continue to fight to protect the integrity of our own systems and do our part to protect the integrity of the overall tax ecosystem. We will be diligent in our efforts to protect American taxpayers, and so will Intuit.

Read more to learn how you can reduce your risk of tax-related identity theft.

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