IRS Records Open to Identity Thieves, Report Says

The new year brings with it preparations to file taxes. But a new report shows you might have to worry about more than your tax bill: Your personal information could be vulnerable to identity theft.

According to an article on an ABC News website, a new report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has found dozens of security weaknesses in Internal Revenue Service (IRS) records – and they haven’t been fixed.

The article says some of those weaknesses include giving too many people access to sensitive material, failure to encrypt sensitive data and weak physical security controls.

“The report says one data center allowed at least 17 individuals access to sensitive areas without justifying a need based on their job duties,” the article says. “Another center did not perform periodic reviews of records accounting for mechanical keys used to gain access to sensitive areas. The IRS also continues to use passwords that are not complex and it installs patches in an untimely manner.”

Acting IRS Commissioner Linda Stiff told ABC News the agency is “taking aggressive steps to correct the weaknesses.”