Technology Advisor Blog

By the end of January, you likely have received your tax return documents with a deadline completion set for April 15, 2026.
With the current time frame of 8-10 weeks to completion, some will leave their taxes to the last minute or engage an accountant for their services. What if we told you that the longer you wait to do your taxes, the more at risk your information falls into the hands of a hacker? In turn causing the big headache that goes along with identity theft and tax fraud.
Hackers have found intricate loopholes to steal your personal and tax information for malicious and financial gain. At Ekaru, our goal isn’t to instill fear when it comes to cybersecurity threats.  It’s essential to understand that anyone can become an unsuspecting victim of a scam. Our intent is to provide you and your business with the essential tools to defend your personal data with peace of mind. In today’s blog, we will discuss why it’s better to get your taxes done proactively.

Benefits of Completing Tax Return Early

Starting tasks that you are less familiar with can be stressful, and often something we push off until we feel capable of figuring it out. Taxes are no different.  According to the IRS, it will take the average person 12 hours to fill in the required information on their annual tax return forms. The only way is through, and some will receive money back while others will owe money once it is all said and done. Here are some benefits of completing your taxes early:

• Beat Scammers: As soon as you fill in your tax forms, you are helping guard yourself from potential identity theft cases. Scammers will fill out multiple forms of people’s information they have gathered in hopes that some will go through for some extra financial strain on you but gains for them. 

  If a scammer beats you to filing, your filing will be rejected and you will have to file a return paper rather than electronic, attaching a Form 14039 to identify an affidavit within your return. If you file before a scammer file one of you, their fraudulent return will be rejected, and you will be clear.

• Made a Mistake? You Have time To Adjust: Sometimes, folks may not fill their taxes early as they are waiting for another document that will allow them to complete their returns. If there is a digital route to file these returns, that is a better recommended route as it will allow you to go back and make any edits you may have caught the first go around. 

  Some mistakes can include math errors, forgetting to report income, or other inaccuracies that may have been omitted then realized. When you have time to fix your mistakes, you don’t have to stress until the last minute!

• Questions? You Have Time to Resolve: When filling in your tax forms, you may be unfamiliar with the process or missing paperwork that could be the difference between earning money and losing money, with contact from the IRS. This is more relevant for those that are self-employed keeping track of ride sharing services, freelance work, or consulting services.

Circumstances Where You May Have Time to Fill out Taxes at A Later Point:

• File an extension for your taxes to October. Though you still must notify on your tax return forms of this change and pay by the April deadline.

• Due date may be different if you were impacted by a federally declared disaster. These can include fires and various natural disasters like floods, severe storms, tornadoes, earthquakes, etc.

Essential Security Tips for Tax Season

Filing early is a strong first step in protecting yourself from tax-related identity theft but also pairing filing early with essential cybersecurity habits is critical. Scammers ramp up phishing emails, fake IRS phone calls, and fraudulent tax prep websites during filing season. Staying alert and proactive can dramatically reduce your risk of becoming a victim.

Key security tips to follow:

• File as early as possible to reduce the window for criminals to file fraudulent returns in your name.
• Use strong, unique passwords for tax software and financial accounts, and enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) whenever available.
• Be cautious of phishing emails and texts. Tax season is the highest for phishing and other socially engineered phishing attempts. These phishing attempts claim to be from the Internal Revenue Service to get you to react. In cases like these, it’s important to recognize the IRS does not initiate contact via email, text, or social media to request personal information. It is only when you make the first initiation to reach out for their services.
• When it comes to sending documents to your accountant, if you take that route, follow their process on sending your tax return securely. If you mail them, have a trusted carrier that provides tracking to ensure its safety to destination.
• Verify websites before entering information. Make sure the URL is accurate, as scammers will create fake domains in hopes of tricking you into giving your information. First step is ensuring the URL begins with “https://” and avoid clicking tax-related links from unsolicited messages. If there are any different font types disguised throughout the URL, it’s best to type it manually yourself than your device automatically loading.
• Secure your Wi-Fi network with updated encryption and avoid filing taxes on public Wi-Fi. Public WIFI has low security preferences while multiple people can access, and your information is never fully private. Filing Tax Returns should be taken into a private area at home or even on personal hot spot.
• Monitor your financial accounts and credit reports for unusual activity during and after-tax season.
• Shred old tax documents before disposal to prevent dumpster-diving identity theft.

How Ekaru Can Help Protect You During Tax Season

Tax season is one of the busiest times of year for cybercriminal activity, and individuals and small businesses are frequent targets. A trusted local Managed Service Provider (MSP) can add an extra layer of protection by strengthening your cybersecurity posture before threats become costly problems. Instead of reacting to fraud after it occurs, an MSP helps you proactively safeguard sensitive financial data.

We can assist your business by:

• Conducting a security assessment to identify vulnerabilities in your devices and network.
• Implementing advanced email filtering and anti-phishing tools to block scam attempts during heightened phishing scam seasons.
• Setting up multi-factor authentication and secure password management systems.
• Ensuring your systems have current software patches and security updates installed.
• Backing up critical financial data to protect against ransomware attacks.
• Providing employee cybersecurity awareness training to reduce human error risks and react proactively.

By combining early filing with strong cybersecurity practices and professional IT support when needed, you significantly reduce your exposure to tax-season scams and identity theft.

Bottom Line

Tax season doesn’t have to be stressful or risky. Filing early gives you a critical head start against identity thieves, but real protection comes from combining proactive filing with smart cybersecurity habits. By staying alert to scams, safeguarding your personal information, and partnering with a trusted local MSP like Ekaru for added protection, you can turn tax season from a target-rich opportunity for criminals into a secure, well-managed process.

Don’t wait last minute or for a scam to become a crisis. Contact us today for a security checkup and make sure your systems, data, and personal information are protected before peak tax season threats hit.