Taxes
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Google won't get a deal on French taxes
If Google was hoping that France would give it a UK-style tax break, it's going to be in for a rude surprise. The country's Finance Minister Michel Sapin informs Reuters that there won't be any negotiations with Google over the €1.6 billion in back taxes (roughly $1.76 billion) the company reportedly owes. The French "don't do deals," Sapin says. He adds that the recent raid on Google's Paris office over alleged tax fraud was really just the next step for investigations that started a few years ago.
The Milwaukee Bucks fell prey to a phishing email scam
Just because you're part of a major league sports team doesn't mean you're immune to internet fraudsters. The Milwaukee Bucks have confirmed that they fell victim to a phishing scam that compromised the basketball team's financial data. After receiving an email impersonating team president Peter Feigin, an employee sent out 2015 tax year data for all of the Bucks' employees, including players. Yes, that means that the salaries and social security numbers of some NBA athletes are in sinister hands.
Engadget giveaway: Win an iPad Pro 9.7 courtesy of TurboTax!
We always know the tax deadline's looming (it's April 18th, by the way), but many of us still procrastinate until the last moment, scrambling to the nearest tax professional. Luckily, Intuit's TurboTax for desktop and mobile can help you file your own return in minutes or apply for an extension. It's also free for basic returns. The mobile version lets you snap a photo of your W-2 so it can auto-fill the info for you and as you proceed through the step-by-step process, there are always helpful hints to clarify the mind-numbing legalese. If you run into any hitches along the way, the SmartLook feature lets you connect to an expert via one-way video for fast answers on the spot. You can even finish up on your desktop later if you didn't make it all the way through on mobile. If you need a little encouragement, TurboTax has provided two 9.7-inch iPad Pro tablets for a pair of lucky readers this week to help get that tax business out of the way. All you need to do is head to the Rafflecopter widget below for up to three chances at winning. Winners: Congratulations to Michael M. of Avondale, PA and Kyle J of Altoona, IA!
Dear Veronica: A taste for laziness
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-703838{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-703838, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-703838{width:100%;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-703838").style.display="none";}catch(e){} OK, the title is a little inflammatory. I know that not everyone using meal delivery services are lazy -- heck, some people have things like children and full-time jobs to think about! But there are alternatives out there, and Gabi Moskowitz of the BrokeAss Gourmet has the answers for you. Since it's tax time (ugh), I also talk about ways to make the whole process a lot easier using Dropbox. It's tough enough paying Uncle Sam; might as well ease the burden a bit!
Last year's IRS cyber attack may have accessed 700,000 accounts
The Internal Revenue Service already increased the total number of accounts accessed in last year's cyber attack once. Today, it's raising the number gain. The IRS announced that during a 9-month review of the incident, it discovered that an additional 390,000 taxpayer accounts were potentially accessed during the breach. Those accounts are in addition to the confirmed access of and initial 114,000 last May and the subsequent 220,000 that were added in August. For those keeping track at home, today's announcement brings the total to over 700,000 affected tax payers.
Report: France wants Google to pay $1.76 billion in back taxes
France is reportedly demanding that Google pay 1.6 billion Euros ($1.76 billion) in back taxes. Reuters cited an anonymous official at the finance ministry who said, "As far as our country is concerned, back taxes concerning this company amount to 1.6 billion euros." The ministry has not, however, officially commented on the matter. Google similarly declined to comment.
IRS says identity thieves nabbed 100,000 income tax e-file PINs
Tax season is a busy time for the Internal Revenue Service, and identity thieves are only making it worse. The IRS confirmed that hackers used stolen social security numbers automated malware to generate over 100,000 e-file (electronic filing) PINs before the department but the clamps on the attack last week. Thieves were actually after 464,000 of the numbers, but were stopped about a quarter of the way through.
IRS expects its e-file tax system to be back online today
If you're desperate to get tax refund cash via the IRS's e-file system, a server crash may delay it, though not by much. The agency said that it's "stll assessing the scope of the outage," but thinks any disruptions will be minimual, adding, "we continue to expect that 9 out of 10 taxpayers will receive their refunds within 21 days." This year, the IRS launched a new version of the Free File system aimed at consumers that earned $62,000 or less, a jump of $2,000 over last year.
Google will pay the UK $185 million in back taxes
Like other tech giants, Google has been accused of using legal loopholes to avoid paying many of the taxes it owes... and it's now tackling some of those claims head-on. Its parent company Alphabet has reached a deal with the UK to pay £130 million (about $185 million) in back taxes going as far as 2005. The settlement reflects a new, more direct approach that bases its payout on revenue from UK-based advertisers. In short, its taxes will reflect the actual size of its UK business -- logical, isn't it?
Watch Apple show off its design studio and spaceship campus (update)
For years, most people have only known about Apple's secret design studio through anecdotes. There's talk of extreme security, loads of specialized manufacturing gear and other stories that make it sound more like Willy Wonka's chocolate factory than a real-world place. However, a lot of that mystery is about to disappear. CBS' 60 Minutes is airing a tour of Apple at 7:30PM Eastern that, on top of an interview with CEO Tim Cook, includes a rare peek at Apple's design wing. You unsurprisingly won't see future products (as hinted by the black cloth above), but there are promises of a talk with design chief Jony Ive about the process behind making all those iPhones, Macs and Watches.
AI could be the solution to catching tax cheats
The fear of AI usually revolves around the fear of an uprising and humans being attacked by our new robot overlords. Researchers at MIT and non-profit technology source Mitre have a new terrifying future for AI. Well, not that scary to most people, but something that could put a fright in the accountants of tax-cheating corporations. The researchers propose a using artificial intelligence to investigate complex tax shelters that keep companies and the rich from paying their fair share of taxes. It's like Skynet but with a really awesome calculator and algorithms.
This year's IRS breach is way bigger than the agency initially thought
Back in May, the Internal Revenue Service said thieves nabbed info for 100,000 people through its transcript website. Today the agency increased that number by an additional 200,000 folks, bringing the total number of potential cases to 334,000. Using a "Get Transcript" tool to access tax returns from previous years -- a vulnerability that the government knew about -- hackers were able to use personal details on 610,000 taxpayers to retrieve tax-related info on the over 300,000 accounts. Most likely, the culprits were looking to eventually claim refunds with the stolen goods. The IRS says it's "moving aggressively" to keep those who are affected or potentially at risk safe, and it's sending out letters to inform individuals if their information was accessed. This isn't the only tax-related incident facing the US government this year either, as 800,000 people received bad tax info through Healthcare.gov in February. [Image credit: KAREN BLEIER/AFP/Getty Images]
Thieves steal tax data for 100,000 from an IRS website
You might need to keep a closer eye than usual on your tax-related info. The Internal Revenue Service is warning that intruders stole tax data for 100,000 people between February and May by taking advantage of a flaw in the agency's transcript website. The evildoers successfully circumvented a security check that asks for static info like your Social Security number and tax filing status. The IRS is temporarily shutting down transcripts and says that its main servers are safe, but this could lead to the culprits filing for bogus tax refunds and getting victims in trouble.
US tech companies have stashed over $420 billion overseas
It's no secret that the US government wants companies to bring more of their offshore profits back home for the sake of taxes, and it's now exceptionally clear as to why. Bloomberg has sifted through financial filings and discovered that the top eight American tech firms, including Apple, Google and Microsoft, are keeping more than $420 billion overseas -- $69 billion of it added in just the past year. That's over a fifth of the $2.1 trillion held abroad by American companies, and would easily cover a lot of government expenses. A tax on Microsoft's recent profits alone ($29.6 billion) would cover NASA and the Commerce Department for a year; Apple ($23.3 billion) could take care of the Transportation Department and Social Security, and Oracle could foot the bill for the Labor Department.
800,000 people get bad tax info in latest Healthcare.gov snafu
Healthcare.gov just can't catch a break -- it's been targeted by hackers and shared personal information with marketing companies in the past six months, and now it's trying to clean up a mess for the nearly 800,000 people it just sent incorrect tax information to. The Obama administration confirmed the issue earlier this morning, and officials promised on the Healthcare.gov blog to contact affected households via phone call and email over the next few days. Needless to say, don't file your taxes yet if you signed up for health insurance using the site this past year. Better safe than sorry, right?
Airbnb to collect taxes in more big cities
Airbnb's been struggling with numerous legal issues for a while now, and one of the biggest complaints against the service is that hosts have been using it to set up illegal hotels to avoid paying taxes. These days, Airbnb's trying to get on the good side of the law, so after getting rid of sketchy listings (in NYC, at least), it's now collecting tourist taxes in more locations. The service has been doing just that in San Francisco and Portland, Oregon since last year, but now the list of locations has grown to include San Jose, California and Amsterdam in the Netherlands (starting this week, as well as Washington and Chicago starting on February 15.
Euro Star Citizen fans getting local support, VAT
Are you a Star Citizen fan based in Europe? If so I've got good news and bad news. The good news is that Cloud Imperium is opening a "publishing arm" in the UK and thus will provide local customer support. The bad news is that Euro customers will be subject to the VAT beginning on February 1st. "We wish there were an alternative to charging the tax, but also believe that it is in our best interest to expand Star Citizen's footprint to a part of the world that has proven to be truly passionate about space games," CIG explains on its website.
Hungary needs cash, so it wants to tax internet traffic
It's probably a good thing that Google got its Street View surveil of Hungary in when it did, because a new tax being proposed could make internet traffic in the country more expensive. A tax bill draft sent to parliament could impose a 150 forints fee (about $0.62) per each gigabyte transferred. Hungarian politicians are defending this move by saying that because of the way telecommunications have changed, so does how they need to be taxed. Estimates for the proposed income? Somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 billion forints, according to Reuters.
Ireland will eliminate Apple's sweet tax deal within four years
Apple and other tech giants had better not lean too heavily on Ireland's super-favorable tax environment; at least one big perk is going away. Finance minister Michael Noonan has detailed a new budget that, among other things, will phase out the "double Irish" system that let companies operating in Ireland (including Apple) move their revenue to an Ireland-registered offshore tax haven. As of 2015, companies incorporated in the country will have four years to make sure that they're also tax resident -- that is, they'll pay the same as any other corporation operating on the Emerald Isle.
EU says Apple's Irish tax deal is illegal
An EU commission has accused Ireland of granting "state aid" tax breaks to Apple that may break market rules. That was the result of an investigation by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) over Irish deals brokered in 1991 and 2007. It has now asked Ireland to provide more information about its tax arrangements with Apple and other companies, including Fiat and Starbucks. The OECD also looking into Luxembourg and the Netherlands as part of a larger probe to find out if certain EU nations help multinational companies swerve taxes. At 12.5 percent, Ireland has a lower tax rate than any other EU country, and Cupertino's complex tax deals there have been questioned before. As the US Senate saw recently, shuffling money around countries helps Apple avoid nearly $20 million a day in taxes -- and the EU seems to have a dimmer view of its strategy than the SEC did. [Image credit: pieceoplastic/Flickr]
