Cybercriminals Love Tax Season – Here’s How to Protect Your Business
Tax season is a stressful time for businesses. Between filing deadlines, financial reports, and increased communication with accountants and payroll providers, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Unfortunately, hackers know this — and they’re counting on it.
Every year, cybercriminals take advantage of high email traffic, rushed decisions, and sensitive financial data exchanges to launch phishing scams, fraud, and ransomware attacks. If you’re not prepared, your business could be one click away from a costly mistake.
Let’s break down why tax season is prime time for hackers, the biggest threats to watch for, and—most importantly—how to keep your business safe.
Why Tax Season Is a Cybercriminal’s Playground
1. Increased Sharing of Sensitive Data
Tax season requires frequent exchanges of financial documents, employee tax forms, and banking information between businesses, accountants, and payroll providers. This creates multiple points of vulnerability for hackers to exploit - especially through fake emails that appear to be from trusted contacts.
2. Rushed Deadlines Lead to Costly Mistakes
With tax season deadlines looming, employees may let their guard down, rushing through emails or payment approvals without verifying legitimacy. Hackers capitalize on this urgency by spoofing legitimate contacts and tricking businesses into sharing sensitive data or making fraudulent payments.
3. High Volume of Tax-Related Emails
Cybercriminals blend into the noise by sending well-crafted phishing emails disguised as IRS notifications, tax refunds, or accounting requests. These emails often contain malicious links, fake login pages, or fraudulent wire transfer instructions.
4. Targeted Financial Scams
Hackers frequently impersonate accountants, payroll departments, or the IRS to steal credentials, reroute direct deposits, or trick businesses into making fraudulent payments. These attacks often go unnoticed until it’s too late.
Biggest Tax Season Cyber Threats
🚨 Phishing / Spear Phishing Scams: Emails pretending to be from the IRS, your accountant, or payroll provider, requesting sensitive financial information or login credentials. Scammers will often target individuals known to have a role in the financial matters of the organization.
🚨 Fake Payment Requests: Fraudulent invoices or urgent wire transfer requests disguised as real financial transactions.
🚨 Payroll Fraud: Hackers posing as employees request changes to direct deposit accounts, diverting salaries to fraudulent accounts.
🚨 Ransomware Attacks: Cybercriminals lock down your financial records and demand a ransom to regain access—right when you need them most.
🚨 Social Engineering: Hackers call or email your business pretending to be an IRS agent, demanding “immediate payment” or face penalties. They often rely on social media platforms to build a profile on the key people to target for spear phishing attacks.
How to Secure Your Business This Tax Season
1. Train Your Team to Recognize Scams
Employees are your first line of defense—but only if they know what to look for. Educate your staff on:
✅ Verifying email senders before opening attachments or clicking links. Use the SLAM Method – validate the Sender; hover over Links to verify the target; be wary of Attachments; and pay close attention to the content of the Message.
✅ Being skeptical of urgent payment or account update requests. Legitimate agencies will never ask for payment in gift card form.
✅ Reporting any suspicious emails or phone calls immediately.
💡 Pro Tip: Conduct phishing simulations with your IT provider to test your employees’ awareness and reinforce training.
2. Implement Strong Financial Policies
Scammers thrive on weak financial controls. Protect your business with:
✅ Dual-approval processes for wire transfers, payroll changes, and large transactions.
✅ Verification via a second channel (e.g., phone call or in-person confirmation) for any payment request. Don’t allow direct deposit changes via email. Require these transactions to be made in person or using video confirmation.
✅ Restricted access to financial data—Practice the principles of least privilege - only authorized personnel should handle sensitive transactions.
💡 Pro Tip: Require a two-person approval system for transactions over a certain amount (e.g., $5,000). This simple step can stop scammers in their tracks.
3. Secure Your Communications
Email is not secure for sharing financial information. Instead:
✅ Use encrypted portals or secure cloud platforms for tax documents.
✅ Require Multifactor Authentication (MFA) for financial accounts and email.
✅ Restrict who can send or receive tax-related documents.
💡 Pro Tip: Hackers can spoof email addresses! If you receive an unexpected financial request, always confirm via a direct phone call.
4. Conduct a Cybersecurity Audit Before Tax Season Peaks
Before tax season gets into full swing, work with your IT provider to:
✅ Patch vulnerabilities in your network and update outdated software.
✅ Audit user permissions—limit access to financial data.
✅ Ensure endpoint security is protecting all devices accessing tax-related info.
💡 Pro Tip: If you’re using personal devices for tax filings or accounting, make sure they have up-to-date security software.
5. Monitor for Suspicious Activity
Hackers don’t just attack once. They lurk inside networks, waiting for the right moment. Prevent this by:
✅ Using AI-powered security tools to detect unusual login attempts or access patterns.
✅ Monitoring banking transactions for unauthorized changes.
✅ Setting up real-time alerts for high-risk financial actions.
💡 Pro Tip: Sign up for banking and payroll alerts to receive instant notifications about suspicious account changes.
Don’t Let Hackers Win This Tax Season
Tax time doesn’t have to be open season for cybercriminals. By training your employees, securing your financial transactions, and strengthening cybersecurity measures, you can outsmart hackers before they strike.
🚀 Start with a FREE Network Assessment to uncover vulnerabilities before cybercriminals do.
Click here to schedule your FREE Network Assessment now!
