Tax Collectors Spy On Citizens via Social Media
State revenue agents have begun nabbing scofflaws by mining information posted on social-networking Web sites, from relocation announcements to professional profiles to financial boasts.
In Minnesota, authorities were able to levy back taxes on the wages of a long-sought tax evader after he announced on MySpace that he would be returning to his home town to work as a real-estate broker and gave his employer’s name. The state collected several thousand dollars, the full amount due.
- Is ‘Friending’ in Your Future? Better Pay Your Taxes First
by Laura Saunders
The temptation is just too great, the information too ripe, to avoid a reaping here and there (and it’ll be more than the debt collectors, police, and tax men cozying up – look for insurance companies singling out people for pre-existing conditions via social media, social media data mining for advanced psychographics and laser-precision-targeted scams/marketing, et cetera).
Human Terrain status: Unaware, thoroughly conquered.
