WardstepYour Written Information Security Plan, done in an evening and kept current all year.
The FTC Safeguards Rule requires tax offices to have a written security plan. Wardstep turns 15 plain questions into a finished plan that follows the IRS's own outline, then helps you train staff, keep proof, and know exactly what to do if client data is ever stolen.
How it works
Built for a solo preparer or a small office, not a company with an IT department.
- Answer 15 questionsPlain-English questions about how you sign in, store, send and dispose of client data, with how-to steps for anything you're missing.
- Get your planA finished WISP for your firm in the outline of IRS Publication 5708, ready to print or save as a PDF.
- Keep it currentTrain staff, collect proof, review yearly, and follow rule changes, so the plan stays true after day one.
Everything a small office needs
One place for the plan and the habits behind it.
Your WISP
Generated from your answers, inventory and staff list, and updated as they change.
Staff training
Send each person a private link from your own email. Five short lessons, quizzes graded on our server, and a signed acknowledgment.
Evidence folder
Screenshots and documents that prove each safeguard is in place, private to your firm.
Breach kit
Step-by-step response based on IRS data-theft guidance, your contacts, the FTC 30-day deadline, and a client letter.
Inventory and access
Where client data lives, who can reach it, and an offboarding checklist when someone leaves.
Reviews and reminders
Yearly review, staff sign-offs and calendar reminders, plus updates when the rules change.
Built like a security product should be
You're trusting us with your firm's security plan. We hold ourselves to the standard we help you meet.
- Every account uses multi-factor sign-in. No exceptions.
- Each firm's data is walled off in the database itself, not just in the app.
- We never ask for or store client tax data: no names, Social Security numbers or returns.
- No ads, no trackers and no third-party scripts on our site or app.
Get your plan done this week
Wardstep is in beta and free while we work with our first tax offices. Tell us what would make it better.