What you need to know about tax identity theft

While this topic concentrates on the tax system, much of the information in here also applies to your normal activities on-line.
 
March 25, 2016 | BY Wendy Zamora
 
                                                   

 
Tis the season for filing your taxes. Tis also the season for getting your identity stolen. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) saw a nearly 50 percent increase in identity theft complaints in 2015. Of those complaints, almost half were related to tax or wage identity theft. The IRS also reported a huge uptick in tax-related ID theft in 2015—about 2.5 times the number in 2014. All this is to say: hang tough. Identity theft is a problem that’s not going away.
 
As is the case with all cybersecurity, the best way to protect yourself from threats of the stolen identity variety is to make yourself aware. By knowing the basic who, what, when, where, why, and how, you’ll be far less likely to fall victim to identity theft. So let’s start from the top.
 
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