Theft of your W-2 Can Lead to Tax Fraud

It is tax-filing time of year, when fraudsters come out of the woodwork to victimize Americans.  

Attackers can easily file a fake tax return, with fictitious figures, to receive a sizable check from the government and leaving you in dire straits.  

Protect you W-2 forms and submit your return as early as possible, as it can be a race with the first one accepted being the winner.  

Businesses must be very careful not to expose employee's W-2's to criminals. Expect hacking and phishing attempts to gain access to breach personnel records.    

Here are some tips for businesses large and small: 

• Limit the number of authorized personnel who can gain access to employees’ personal info and W-2’s * Set up two-factor or multi-factor verification systems to authenticate access to such sensitive information 
• Establish protocols for sensitive information requests, without a dependency on email 
• Encrypt sensitive Personally Identifiable Information and W-2 records 
• Employ best practices to maintain a well defended compute environment, including anti-malware, firewalls, email and spam filters, as well as training your employees to not fall for phishing and report incidents quickly 

Be safe and secure!     

Image Source: The Chronicle Online  

More information and good security advice can be found on Oregon FBI's Tech Tuesday site      

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