No data is stored at TurboTax. The account requirement this year is *additional* security to protect your data.
When you import data from your brokerage, it is never a direct connection between your computer and the brokerage, it must pass through TurboTax servers as encrypted data. The brokerage is a partner with TurboTax, not you, for imports. When you import, you are doing it through TurboTax servers. It is always that way. In the past, the TurboTax server just passed the data from the brokerage to you. This year they introduced additional security so that instead of just passing data, they want to verify that it is actually *you* that is requesting the data. It is not to *get* your data (that must pass through the TurboTax server anyway) but to add extra *protection* to your data.
Because of news worthy hacking and public concerns about data security, many software companies are adding all kinds of additional security, two level login's with a code sent to your e-mail or text message to cell phone for verification.
**Disclaimer: This post is for discussion purposes only and is NOT tax advice. The author takes no responsibility for the accuracy of any information in this post.**
