Taxpayers should always be careful with their personal information. Not only because someone could steal your identity and open credit cards, but because they can also file a tax return in your name getting whatever refund you are entitled to. This happens more often than you think and is popular among illegal aliens as well as identity thieves. Illegal aliens us it to get work and to appear legal, while identity thieves just want your money. In fact billionaire Donald Bren had his tax refund check stolen from him worth 1.4 Million dollars just a month ago. So believe if it can happen to someone like Donald Bren it can happen to you.

Here are some simple things you can do to prevent a tax related identity theft.

- Know that the IRS doesn’t contact people through email. If you get an email claiming to be from the IRS you can forward it to phishing@irs.gov.

- Know that identity thieves obtain your information through several means including but not limited to stealing your wallet or purse off your person, car or home, spam email messages, going through your trash, and accessing information left from insecure websites.

- If you visit a site that is claiming to be an official IRS website and it doesn’t start with www.irs.gov, you should forward that link to the IRS at phishing@irs.gov.

- To learn how to identify a secure website you can visit the Federal Trade Commission at www.onguardonline.gov/tools/recognize-secure-site-using-ssl.aspx . Also know that even information sent to secure websites can be read and breached with the right tools. Always make sure your network is secure and that your computer is free of viruses.

- Never carry your Social Security card with you unless absolutely necessary, and make sure to store it in a safe place.

- If someone is using your Social Security number to obtain a job it will seem as if you are not reporting all your income.

- If you receive a notice that more than one tax return has been filed in your name you may have had your identity stolen. Don’t delay in contacting the IRS to begin the process of resolving the matter. You will need to prove your identity by submitting a copy of your valid government-issued identification – such as a Social Security card, driver’s license, or passport – along with a copy of a police report and/or a completed Form 14039, Identity Theft Affidavit. The IRS has a special department called the Identity Protection Specialized Unit which can be contacted toll-free at 800-908-4490. If you would like to learn more about the FTC guidance for reporting identity theft visit  www.ftc.gov/idtheft.

It’s that time of the year again to prepare your taxes in hopes of getting some money back in the form of a tax refund. When you pay someone else to prepare your taxes you are taking the risk that the person won’t steal your SSN and file a tax return without you knowing about it. They then steal your refund and when you go to file your taxes the IRS rejects your return because they have already filed and taken your money.

There are 30 people in Chicago that know what I am talking about because they have all been victims of identity theft and have had their tax returns taken from them. All thirty of the alleged identity theft victims had an H&R Block at 3932 Main St. in Chicago prepare their tax returns. All of the thirty victims we informed by the IRS that they had already filed their return.

The H&R Block as well as the police are investigating the matter. It seems to me that someone at the tax return office is stealing the Social Security numbers of it’s customers. I suppose all thirty customers could have had their identity stolen by someone else and they filed the fraudulent tax returns but that seems unlikely.

It’s a shame that an office like that of H&R Block can’t prevent it’s employees from stealing Social Security numbers and filing fraudulent tax returns. It makes sense to me that a problem like that would be high on H&R Block’s list of things to prevent. I have heard many stores about little independent tax offices stealing identities but never a large company like H&R Block. Maybe another reason to file your own taxes.