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Poker Players Should Be Aware Of The IRS Using Social Media To Collect Information

Practice Raises Some Privacy Concerns

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The poker community wins hundreds of millions of dollars annually in tournaments alone, and everyone of course knows that the government gets its cut. However, just how they go about enforcing the tax law may be a little controversial.

According to a report from The Spokesman Review, a new report dived into the IRS’ practice of using social media to find people who owe them money. The tactic has been going on for years, but it apparently has recently been raising some more legal concerns centered around privacy.

The motivation for the IRS is to streamline its collection of data in a time when its budget is shrinking. President Donald Trump is a huge proponent of smaller government.

The new research comes from Kimberly Houser, an associate professor of business law in WSU’s Carson College of Business. Her report cited an example of the conviction of a Florida woman who boasted on Facebook that she was the “Queen of Tax Fraud.”

Obviously not all cases involve such eye-catching social media posts, but images or videos about a new car or house from your poker winnings could be seen by the government.

Houser’s report said that an IRS training document mentions Facebook, MySpace, and YouTube as possible platforms to collect taxpayer information.

“What is being sold as an efficient fraud detection system may actually be the end of privacy as we know it,” the paper warned in its conclusion.

 
 
Tags: Taxes,   IRS