FTC and IRS team up against tax-related ID theft

The Federal Trade Commission and the Internal Revenue Service have announced they have joined forces to make it easier for consumers to report tax-related identity theft and to receive assistance to help recover. The IRS will now allow consumers to report identity theft to the IRS electronically through the FTC's IdentityTheft.gov website. Tax-related identity theft occurs when someone uses a stolen Social Security number to file a tax return and claim the refund. Victims of tax-related identity theft need to file an IRS Identity Theft Affidavit, also known as IRS Form 14039, before the IRS can begin resolving the problem. Until this new initiative, consumers could only file the form manually. Under the new FTC-IRS initiative, IdentityTheft.gov will be the first and the only place where consumers can submit an IRS Form 14039 electronically. A new FTC Blog post provides more detail on how the process works.