IRS security is failing taxpayers, senator says

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service, the Congress, and private electronic tax-filing vendors aren’t doing enough to protect the personal information of taxpayers, senators said Tuesday.

The IRS needs to step up its cyberecurity efforts, said members of the Senate Finance Committee, citing two recent data breaches at the agency, along with 94 open cybersecurity recommendations from the Government Accountability Office.

“Hackers and crooks, including many working for foreign crime syndicates, are jumping at every opportunity they have to steal hard-earned money and sensitive personal data from U.S. taxpayers,” Senator Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, said during a hearing. “In my view, taxpayers have been failed by the agencies, the companies, and the policymakers here in Congress they rely on to protect them.”

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