Tips to Stay Ahead of Data Thieves During National Small Business Week

It’s National Small Business Week. The Minnesota Department of Revenue is offering tips on staying vigilant.

Stay ahead of the thieves by taking certain actions daily or weekly to ensure your clients and your business remain safe:

• Track your daily e-file acknowledgements. If there are more acknowledgements than returns you know you filed, dig deeper to identify questionable returns.
• Track your weekly EFIN usage. The IRS posts the number of returns filed with your EFIN weekly. Access your IRS e-Services account and your EFIN application.
  • Select “EFIN Status” from the application
  • Contact the IRS e-help Desk if your return totals exceed your number of returns filed
  • Keep your EFIN application up to date with all phone, address, or personnel changes
• Track your weekly PTIN usage. If you are an attorney, CPA, enrolled agent, or Annual Filing Season Program participant and file 50 or more returns, you can check your PTIN account for a weekly report.
  1. Access your online PTIN account
  2. Select "View Returns Filed Per PTIN"
  3. Complete federal Form 14157 to report excessive use or misuse of your PTIN
• If you have a Centralized Authorization File (CAF) Number, keep your authorizations up to date. Remove authorizations for taxpayers who are no longer your clients. For more information, see IRS Publication 947.
• Create your IRS online accounts using the two-factor Secure Access authentication to help prevent account takeovers. Go to www.irs.gov/secureaccess to review necessary steps.