IRS Must Overhaul Data Security Protocols to Discourage Leaks

Last month, a consultant working with the IRS was charged in connection with stealing and leaking to news outlets tax return data on a notable, but unnamed, public official and thousands of the nation’s highest earners.

If one thinks public officials’ tax returns should be a matter of public record or suspects high earners aren’t paying their fair share, they might applaud the leak and leaker.

But those who’d defend the income privacy of public and noteworthy individuals—and all taxpayers, for that matter—would condemn the leak. The exposure of private tax information raises concerning questions about the state of ...