I am sure all of you are well aware that stress increases during the holiday season. At the risk of making it feel even more overwhelming than it already does, did you know there is another celebration going on, one you may not know about, but probably should be taking part in?

Alright, It is not really that exciting, but National Tax Security Awareness Week did start on Monday, December 5. In fact, I am not even sure how I feel about the way that the IRS is framing its efforts surrounding the week.

Now, on the whole, the IRS often feels like an antagonistic force, so little that it says ever sounds that fantastic. I do, however, believe that it deserves credit for trying to be proactive about preventing tax fraud and identity theft in many forms. In fact, I even agree with some of their recent rhetoric about how it is a difficult task. No matter what safeguards are put up to keep out cybercriminals, it is difficult to defend against a tactic before it has been used. By its nature, the evolution of that battle is pushed along by criminals figuring things out.

In a recent news release about this celebratory week, the IRS said:

The IRS, state tax agencies and the tax community came together in 2015 to combat tax-related identity theft as a coordinated partnership. But they realized one partner was missing:  taxpayers.

That makes it sound like taxpayers are doing something wrong, and one should never blame the victim.

This is really a semantics battle, though, for there are actions that everyone should be taking to try to keep their personal information secure. This may be especially true this time of year when you are likely making more transactions, online and otherwise, than at any other point on the calendar.

So even if I don’t like their wording, the tips given by the IRS are solid ones and deserve to be noted. To that end, here are their recommendations:

• Use security software and make sure it updates automatically; essential tools include:

 • Firewall

 • Virus/malware protection

• File encryption for sensitive data

• Treat your personal information like cash, don’t leave it lying around

• Check out companies to find out who you’re really dealing with

• Give personal information only over encrypted websites – look for “https” addresses.

• Use strong passwords and protect them

• Back up your files

The IRS also took it another step, giving extra ideas about avoiding phishing and malware:

• Avoid phishing emails, texts or calls that appear to be from the IRS and companies you know and trust, go directly to their websites instead

• Don’t open attachments in emails unless you know who sent it and what it is

• Download and install software only from websites you know and trust

• Use a pop-up blocker

• Talk to your family about safe computing

To sum up, although I do not feel taxpayers should feel any personal obligation to help the IRS with its security efforts, there are common-sense measures that we everyone should take in an attempt to keep our personal information safe. Do it for you, so that you can avoid the pain, frustration and time that could come with your information falling into the wrong hands.