by Brian Thompson | Feb 15, 2023 | General, Identity Theft
Tax identity theft is a type of identity theft that occurs when someone uses your personal information to file a fraudulent tax return and claim a refund. It can have serious consequences, including delays in receiving legitimate refunds, penalties for underpayment, and damage to your credit score. In this article, we’ll explain how tax identity theft occurs, how to spot the warning signs, and what you can do to protect yourself from Tax Fraud
How Tax Identity Theft Occurs
Tax identity theft can occur in a number of ways. For example:
- Phishing scams: Scammers request personal information such as Social Security numbers or bank account details through emails or phone calls that appear to be from the IRS.
- Data breaches: Hackers steal personal information from large companies or government agencies and sell it on the black market for tax identity theft purposes.
- Stolen mail: Criminals steal mail that contains personal information, such as tax documents like W-2 forms or 1099s.
- Social engineering: Scammers use social engineering tactics, like creating fake job postings or fake charity organizations, to trick people into revealing personal information.
Warning Signs of Tax Identity Theft
According to the IRS, some of the warning signs of tax identity theft include:
- The IRS sends a letter stating multiple tax returns were filed or unknown wages were received.
- You can’t file an electronic tax return because someone filed with your Social Security number.
- A tax transcript arrives in the mail, despite not requesting it.
- You get an IRS notice that someone opened an online account in your name.
- You receive an unexpected refund or an incorrect refund amount.
- You receive a tax bill for taxes you didn’t owe.
How to Protect Yourself from Tax Fraud
There are several things you can do to protect yourself from tax identity theft:
- Safeguard personal information: Only provide personal details to trusted individuals or organizations. Beware of unsolicited phone calls or emails requesting such information.
- File taxes early: Early filing reduces the risk of a fraudster filing a return in your name.
- Check credit report regularly: Regularly checking your credit report helps you spot unusual activity like unauthorized new accounts or loans.
With defend-id Coverage, Protect Yourself from Tax Fraud
At defend-id, we understand the importance of protecting your identity and your finances from tax fraud. That’s why we offer fully managed recovery programs to help you recover from the effects of identity theft. Our team of experts will work with you to restore your credit, recover lost funds, and ensure that your identity is fully restored. Learn more about our fully managed recovery programs here: What’s Fully Managed Recovery for Identity Fraud
Tax identity theft is a serious threat that can cause financial hardship and personal stress. Protect yourself by being vigilant with personal information, filing taxes early, and checking your credit report regularly. If you do become a victim, Defend-ID’s fully managed recovery program can help restore your identity. Learn more about the program on our blog. Stay safe and secure!
Don’t let tax identity theft damage your finances and your credit. Take steps to Protect Yourself from Tax Fraud, and consider defend-id’s fully managed recovery programs to give you peace of mind.
Learn more: Protect employees from tax fraud. Peace of Mind with a Place to Turn is a great benefit your employees will appreciate.
Related articles: Early Tax Filing Helps Prevent Tax-Related Identity Theft
by Brian Thompson | Feb 9, 2023 | General, Identity Theft, Uncategorized
As a parent, it’s important to be aware of the potential dangers and harmful content on TikTok, a popular social media platform among children. This guide provides information on TikTok parental controls and the reasons why it may be best to keep children off the app.
TikTok Parental Controls: A Guide for Protecting Children
Concerned parents and authorities need a comprehensive guide on TikTok parental controls to protect children from harmful and inappropriate content on the popular social media platform. This tutorial outlines step-by-step instructions to implement TikTok controls and discusses privacy policies.
- Create TikTok Account: Get started by creating a TikTok account for your child, giving you access to all platform features and settings.
- Enable Digital Wellbeing: Go to “Settings & Privacy” and select “Digital Wellbeing” to enable features such as “Screen Time Management” and “Restricted Mode.” These tools help monitor children’s activity and protect them from harmful content.
- Adjust Privacy Settings: Protect your child’s privacy by visiting “Settings & Privacy” and selecting “Privacy and Safety.” Change who can send direct messages, view videos, and see their profile to the most secure options.
- Report Inappropriate Content: Encourage your child to report any inappropriate or harmful content by using TikTok’s reporting feature.
- Educate Children: Parental controls are important, but so is educating children on online safety and the potential dangers of social media. Teach them to be cautious with information they share, avoid strangers, and report any inappropriate behavior or content.
Regarding privacy policies, TikTok collects information such as location, device information, and usage data. While this data improves user experience, it may raise privacy concerns for parents. To protect children’s privacy, review TikTok’s privacy policy and adjust app privacy settings to limit data sharing.
In conclusion, TikTok parental controls provide a vital way to protect children from harmful and inappropriate content on the app. By creating a TikTok account, enabling digital wellbeing features, adjusting privacy settings, reporting inappropriate content, and educating children, parents can ensure a safe and enjoyable TikTok experience for their kids.
There are several reasons why it may be best to keep children off TikTok. Some of the main concerns include:
- Inappropriate Content: TikTok is known for hosting a vast amount of content that may not be suitable for children. This includes content that is sexually explicit, violent, or promotes harmful ideologies.
- Online Safety: TikTok is a social media platform that can be used by predators to target and exploit children. Children may be at risk of being exposed to inappropriate content, cyberbullying, or may become victims of online grooming.
- Screen Time: TikTok is a highly engaging platform that can quickly consume a lot of a child’s time. Spending too much time on TikTok can lead to decreased physical activity, disrupted sleep patterns, and decreased academic performance.
- Privacy Concerns: TikTok collects and stores personal data from its users, which can raise privacy concerns. Children may not understand the implications of sharing personal information online, and their data could be used for malicious purposes. See TikTok Terms of Service
- Intrusive Policies: TikTok’s privacy policies may be considered intrusive, as the app collects and stores a large amount of personal data from its users. This can raise privacy concerns, particularly for children who are vulnerable.
Considering the potential dangers and harmful content on TikTok, it may be best to keep children off the app. Instead, parents can encourage children to spend their time on other, safer and more appropriate activities.
Protecting children on TikTok requires a combination of parental controls, education, and awareness of the potential dangers. By understanding TikTok’s privacy policies, implementing parental controls, and limiting children’s time on the app, parents can ensure a safe and enjoyable online experience for their kids.
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by Brian Thompson | Feb 8, 2023 | Breach, Identity Theft
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has come a long way, bringing numerous benefits. However, it also has the potential to be used for malicious purposes, especially in social engineering. This article will show you how AI can manipulate people and why it’s crucial to be aware of these tactics to protect your personal information.
What is Social Engineering?
Social engineering manipulates individuals into revealing confidential information or performing actions that benefit the attacker. Attackers use various methods, such as emails, phone calls, or in-person interactions. AI can automate these tactics and make them even more sophisticated.
How AI Manipulates People
AI can manipulate people through voice assistants. AI-powered voice assistants can mimic human voices, making it hard to tell the difference between a human and an AI. This can trick individuals into revealing personal information, leaving them vulnerable to attack. Here is an example story from Knowbe4.
Chatbots are another tool that AI uses for social engineering. Chatbots can hold conversations with individuals, leading them to reveal personal information. People often trust chatbots, thinking they are human, but chatbots can be programmed to manipulate individuals into revealing sensitive information, which attackers can then use for malicious purposes.
Why You Must Be Cautious
Attackers value personal information, such as Social Security numbers, credit card numbers, and home addresses. AI-powered social engineering increases the risk of this information falling into the wrong hands. The tactics used are sophisticated and hard to detect.
To protect your personal information, be cautious when interacting with AI-powered voice assistants or chatbots. Provide personal information only to trusted sources. Be wary of suspicious emails or phone calls that ask for personal information.
AI has the potential to manipulate people through social engineering. Be aware of these tactics and protect your personal information by being cautious when interacting with AI-powered voice assistants or chatbots. Only reveal personal information to trusted sources and be cautious of suspicious emails or phone calls.
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by Brian Thompson | Jan 25, 2023 | Identity Theft
What is Fully Managed Recovery for identity fraud, and how does it improve the employee’s experience?
Fully managed identity theft recovery is a service offered by some companies that helps individuals who have been the victims of identity theft. The service typically includes assistance with canceling and reissuing credit cards, restoring credit reports, and contacting the appropriate authorities to report the identity theft. The service is considered “fully managed” because the company manages the entire process for the individual, from start to finish, and the individual does not have to take on the task of recovering their identity on their own.
Fully managed identity theft recovery can improve the victim’s experience by taking on the burden of dealing with the aftermath of the theft. The process of recovering from identity theft can be time-consuming and overwhelming, especially if the victim is not familiar with the necessary steps. By using a fully managed service, the victim can have peace of mind knowing that a professional is handling the situation and that their identity will be restored as quickly as possible.
Additionally, fully managed identity theft recovery can provide a higher level of protection for victims. The company will have experienced and trained professionals who know the procedures and regulations for identity theft recovery and can help the victims minimize the damage. They also have specialized knowledge to help the victims prevent future identity theft.
Finally, the fully managed service can provide victims with access to resources and support throughout the recovery process. They can help answer questions and provide guidance, which can be especially helpful for victims who are not familiar with the process.
Stop worrying about identity theft and breach compliance. Let us worry about that, it is OUR job, not yours.
Another way of looking at it:
Fully-Managed Recovery for Identity Theft
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by Brian Thompson | Jan 20, 2023 | healthcare, Identity Theft
Life insurance fraud is a criminal act in which an individual or group of individuals intentionally deceives an insurance company in order to receive a financial benefit or payout from a life insurance policy. This can occur in a variety of ways, from exaggerating or fabricating claims on a policy to providing false information in order to obtain coverage.
Examples of life insurance fraud include:
- Policyholder fraud: This occurs when the policyholder provides false information on a life insurance application in order to obtain coverage, such as exaggerating their health status or providing a false occupation.
- Beneficiary fraud: This occurs when a beneficiary of a life insurance policy makes false claims in order to receive a payout, such as fabricating the cause of death or providing false documentation.
- Agent fraud: This occurs when an insurance agent engages in fraudulent activity, such as selling policies to individuals who do not qualify for coverage or falsifying policy applications.
- Premium diversion: This occurs when an insurance agent takes premium payments from policyholders but does not use the funds to pay for the policy, instead using the money for personal gain.
To avoid falling victim to scams, here are a few steps to take:
- Research the insurance company and agent before purchasing a policy. Check for any complaints or disciplinary actions against them with the state insurance commissioner.
- Be wary of unsolicited phone calls or emails offering life insurance policies.
- Carefully review all policy documents before signing, and ask questions if anything is unclear.
- Pay attention to billing and payment schedules, and report any discrepancies to the insurance company immediately.
If you suspect that you are a victim of life insurance fraud, you should report it to the insurance company immediately. You should also contact the state insurance commissioner and file a complaint with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Additionally, you may want to contact the police to report the crime.
by Brian Thompson | Jan 19, 2023 | General, Identity Theft
Identity theft is a growing concern for individuals and businesses alike, and as it pertains to accountants, it is important to consider offering identity theft protection services to clients. Not only can this service provide peace of mind for clients, but it can also help protect the accounting firm’s business from potential liability. Is your Accountant offering identity theft protection?
One of the main reasons why an accountant should consider offering identity theft protection services is the transfer and handling of sensitive documents and information. Accountants have access to a wide range of personal and financial client information. Information including Social Security numbers, bank account information, and tax returns. If this information were to fall into the wrong hands, it could be used for identity theft and other fraudulent activities.
Identity theft protection services can help protect clients from this risk by providing monitoring and alerts for suspicious activity, as well as assistance in the event that their identity is stolen. This can lessen potential damage and give your clients a feeling of security.
Liability
In addition to protecting clients, offering identity theft protection services can also help protect the accounting firm from potential liability. Accountants have a professional responsibility to keep clients’ information secure and protect it from unauthorized access. If a client’s identity is stolen and it is determined that the firm did not take adequate measures to protect their information, it may be held liable for any damages.
Compliance
Another important consideration is compliance. Accountants are subject to a wide range of regulations, including HIPAA, SOC 2, and the GDPR, which all require you to protect personal information. Failure to comply with these regulations could result in fines and legal penalties. By providing identity theft protection services, you can make sure that you are complying with the law and protecting the information of your clients.
As we started with, identity theft is a growing concern for both individuals and businesses, and accountants should consider offering identity theft protection services to their clients. Not only can this service provide peace of mind for clients, but it can also help protect the business from potential liability and compliance concerns.
