This new report illustrates the deceptive practices by prominent tax preparation companies, the privacy violations they commit, and the growing threat of tax-time scams from fraudsters impersonating the IRS. CFA argues that these practices are designed to confuse and squeeze taxpayers, and that comprehensive privacy laws are essential to protect consumers from behavior like this across our daily lives.  

Despite spending millions lobbying against simplified government tax prep and shelling out for Super Bowl ads, these companies still feel the need to collect massive amounts of data, trap you into their ecosystem of products, and fail to advertise directly or clearly. 

“Tax time is stressful enough as it is without worrying about being upsold, misled, or having your data used in ways you’d never imagine,” CFA Director of AI & Privacy Ben Winters said. ”The practices illustrated in the report underline the dire need for strong comprehensive consumer privacy legislation mandating data minimization.”