IR-2022-140, July 19, 2022
WASHINGTON — The Security Summit partners today encouraged tax professionals to increase their efforts to inform clients about the IRS Identity Protection PIN Opt-In Program to help protect people against tax-related identity theft.
The IP PIN serves as a critical defense against identity thieves. The IRS, state tax agencies and the nation’s tax industry – working together as the Security Summit – need assistance from tax professionals to let their clients know that IP PINs are now available to anyone who can verify their identity.
Sharing information about the IP PIN Opt-In Program is the first in a five-part weekly summer series sponsored by the Summit partners to highlight critical steps tax professionals can take to protect client data – and their businesses. The series is an effort to urge tax professionals to intensify efforts to secure their systems and protect client data during the summer and throughout the year. These alerts will be issued each Tuesday for five weeks to coincide with the IRS Nationwide Tax Forums, which helps educate tax professionals on security and other important topics.
“These identity protection numbers provide an extra layer of safety to protect people against tax-related fraud tied to using stolen personal information,” said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. “Following work by the IRS, the IP PIN program is now available to anyone who can verify their identity. We urge tax professionals to encourage their clients to protect themselves through the IP PIN program.”
