Financial Advisors Should Question Tax Preparers About Protecting Data

CPAs continue to be tempting targets for cybercrooks looking to steal data to file tax returns and steal identities. High-net-worth clients’ information is especially prized, and the IRS and other tax agencies have made recommendations and established electronic requirements for tax preparers to protect that data.

“In addition to the obvious financial information handled by tax oriented CPAs and other practitioners, practitioners often serve as advisors to client businesses and other financial affairs,” said Dr. Sean Stein Smith, a CPA and assistant professor at the department of economics and business at Lehman College in New York. “Data security and protecting information is a high profile issue, and clients -- especially HNW individuals -- certainly understand the value that comprehensive security policies provide.” MORE

Mark Brown