Tax Apps Collect Your Data: How Worried Should You Be?

pcmag.com:

Can I see your tax return real quick? I promise I'll give it right back.

If that made you cringe, good. It's hard to think of a more personal document than a tax return, which is why you shouldn't trust it to just anyone—including online tax software companies.

Reading app privacy policies, dull as it sounds, is an essential part of keeping your information safe and private, and that applies to tax software, too. You're trusting these applications with your most personal information—your income and address—teven your social security number. 

There is some good news, though. Under US law, companies can't share or sell your tax data, at least not without your express permission. They might use it to advertise to you, though, but in a fairly limited way. Let's talk more about what that means. 

IRS policy forbids tax preparers, including software companies, from sharing tax information unless you give your explicit consent. More importantly, that consent cannot be buried in tiny print in the terms of service. To quote the actual policy: 

"The text of the consent must meet the following specifications: the size of the text must be at least the same size as, or larger than, the normal or standard body text used by the website or software package for direction, communications, or instructions and there must be sufficient contrast between the text and background colors."

In other words, if a company is sharing your tax information, you should know about it. The intent of the policy, according to an IRS FAQ on the issue, is for sharing to only happen when you specifically want it to. There are valid reasons you might consent to sharing such information, such as if you're applying for a mortgage. The policy allows you to opt into