OT For US Folks it's Income Tax Time Again

[KG Erwin]

Alright, many of you folks know that I work for the WV State Tax Dept and specialize in stopping fraudulent returns. Please remember that if you use a tax preparer, use a reputable one, not a fly-by-night who works cheap. Identity theft is increasing every year, and its a tough battle against these criminals who are stealing folks' SSNs and filing fraud returns. Yes, some preparers do this. The IRS is putting in place more secure procedures, but tax fraud is a big business. At the state level, we are fighting an uphill battle, and most of it is behind the scenes. So, I cannot reveal any of our secrets, but just use extra caution, OK?

I do this as a public service, independent of my job. These cautionary warnings are posted without the authority of the WV State Tax Dept or any other government agency. (I'm required to post this disclaimer due to state regulations.)

[Orm]

Thank you for the public service KG Erwin.

Identity theft is big business now days. And it is not just used for tax fraud. For example: In Sweden criminals steal the identity and then steal and plunder small companies. With the stolen identity they transfer ownership to a new fake owner and then they steal the assets.

[wings7]

Thanks Glenn for the heads up. I've been using H&R Block (it's expensive) to prepare my returns the past few years. Before that I had a friend doing it using Turbo Tax and she made mistakes using the supposed fool proof Turbo Tax (and that cost me dearly) [:@]. So, I feel safe and confident that my returns are done safely and correctly [:)].

Patrick

[jday305]

The tax preparers that work for franchis business's like H&R, Jackson-Hewitt and Liberty are usually quickly trained and only a step above data entry level knowledge of taxes. They are known to charge many times the amount that professional tax professionals who work for private public accounting firms and CPAs charge. At my firm, we charge on average half to a third less than those Franchises and our tax clients usually have more complicated returns. Erwin is correct that fraud is becoming common place that the public is at risk. With the average tax return getting an individual or family back a few hundred to several thousand, thats big money for the criminals out there to iqnore. Thanks for bringing the subject up.