Confidential Records Taken From Tax Filing Office Found In Dumpster

A man found hundreds of tax documents discarded in a dumpster at a Mansfield industrial office complex which was only ten miles away from the Liberty Tax Alta Mesa office in Fort Worth in which they were filed at.

The man who found the documents, called a woman in Mansfield to let her know that her personal information was found in that dumpster.

The records contained social security numbers, addresses, drivers license numbers, and bank account information.

Authorities are investigating the dumping and theft of the documents according to the owner of the franchise.

Past employees and current are being asked questions about this incident.

According to Liberty Tax officials, all the customers will be contacted about this security breach and identity protection will be given to all of them.

If a data breach ever happens within your company find out how our CSR Readiness Program could benefit you.

To learn more about how Mobile Record Shredders can protect your documents and hard drives, please contact us to get a free quote and security risk assessment.

Confidential documents found in a recycling dumpster

It appears that the documents found in the dumpster are linked to a Hillsboro Law Group. Most of the documents were tax returns with social security information on them.

Hundreds of records of confidential legal documents were found in a recycling dumpster in Hillsboro. The documents contained information of emails, delicate customer records, and tax returns with social security numbers on them.

A lady who worked at a nearby business who shared a recycling dumpster with the company found the confidential information. “I was appalled that this information was just sitting there,” said Melissa.

“I took out my recycling and all these law papers were just sitting on top of the boxes,” said Melissa. “This could be a gold mine in the wrong hands.”

According to Melissa most of the documents seemed to be connected with a law group that has an office close by. She said she emailed and called St. Andrew Legal Clinic in Hillsboro but never got a response.

Just days after Melissa found the documents in the dumpster and after she had notified the law office, it was discovered that most of the documents had been removed. However, there were still legal records and receipts still in the open dumpster.

One form titled “Intake Sheet” included the contact information, name of the customer, the person’s recent wage information, estimated retainer and attorney’s fees, along with why the person needed legal assistance.

This man’s information was located and his information was returned to him.

“It’s upsetting to know that all of my personal information is not being disposed of properly,” said Brendan.

Read the rest of the article here.

Tax Time Shredding

Tax time is often a time when identity thieves are preying. Your tax returns, new and old, have confidential information on them that could be used against you by identity thieves. Make sure to keep your documents safe and out of harm's way.

Identity thieves are lurking and only need your Social Security number and birth date to file a tax return in your name. With these key pieces of information, they can falsify additional information requested on the return and wrongly receive money that belongs to you. The IRS does not check the validity of each tax request and because of this, your tax return money could easily be on its way to an identity thief pretending to be you.

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