Florida, protect yourself from tax ID theft!
Tax ID theft is rampant in Florida. The IRS is taking steps to protect you. Florida is 1 of 3 test markets to help protect taxpayers.
With the incidents of tax identity thefts rising, the IRS is working on curbing this out of control issue. Ordinarily, you would have had to be a victim of id theft to apply for the IRS Pin. In an effort to be proactive, the Internal Revenue Service is testing a program in Florida, Georgia and the District of Columbia, where taxpayers can obtain an Identity Protection PIN (personal identification number). The IP PIN is a six-digit number that must be used on a tax return, in addition to one’s Social Security number, to verify the identity of the filer. Without this PIN, the IRS will not accept a tax return. The process if fairly simple and took me under 15 minutes. Be prepared though. You will need:
- Social Security number (SSN)
- Date of Birth
- Email address
- Filing status
- Mailing address from your most recently filed tax return
So, I know what you are thinking. Do I need to do this? All I have to say is, an ounce of prevention……15 minutes up front, may not save you anything, or it may save you from hours and hours of sweat and tears.
– From your dedicated thedigitalCPA team!
