The Associated Press just broke a story that hackers have stolen tax information from over 100,000 Americans.
Thieves used an online service provided by the IRS to gain access to information from more than 100,000 taxpayers, the agency said Tuesday. The information included tax returns and other tax information on file with the IRS.
The IRS said the thieves accessed a system called “Get Transcript.” In order to access the information, the thieves cleared a security screen that required knowledge about the taxpayer, including Social Security number, date of birth, tax filing status and street address.
“The IRS notes this issue does not involve its main computer system that handles tax filing submission; that system remains secure,” the agency said in a statement. The IRS said thieves targeted the system from February to mid-May. The service has been temporarily shut down.
If the IRS can’t seem to manage to keep its tax information locked down, how are they going to take on the responsibility of securely enforcing ObamaCare?
This story follows the recent embarrassing gaffe made by an IRS employee, who broadcasted a citizen’s private phone call live on the Howard Stern radio show:
