Tax identity theft is truly an insidious and pervasive problem in our modern day environment. In 2013 the IRS was able to stultify up to around $25 Billion worth of fraudulently filed tax returns. The other side of that coin is that same year the government dolled out and exhorbitant $5.2 Billion to non deserving recipients. With the advent of electronic filing coupled with IRS policy of passing out tax refunds as fast as possible, there are certainly not as many avenues to vet the tax return before the money is sent. So, all though this is extremely convenient for the law abiding taxpayer, it backfires in that it also makes it much easier for tax identity thefts to get a refund using somebody else's Social Security Number. This article will take a look at the growing tax identity theft epidemic and discuss preventative measures that can be taken to halt fraudulent tax returns being filed.