WISP requirements in Maryland
Maryland is a 45-day state with a required pre-consumer Attorney General notice. A Maryland incident file should preserve the investigation and likely-misuse determination, any three-year no-notice record, the 10-day service-provider clock if applicable, the OAG pre-notice package, and the final resident notice with FTC and OAG identity-theft resources.
Key facts
- Maryland firms should keep a written security program tied to the FTC Safeguards Rule and IRS taxpayer-data guidance.
- Owner/licensee resident notice as soon as reasonably practicable and no later than 45 days after discovery or notification of the breach when notice is required; a service provider that maintains data it does not own or license must notify the owner/licensee as soon as practicable and no later than 10 days.
- Notify the Maryland Office of the Attorney General before giving resident notice; include the number of affected Maryland residents, when and how the breach occurred, response steps, and the sample notice or form of notice to residents.
Key takeaways
- Maryland firms should keep a written security program tied to the FTC Safeguards Rule and IRS taxpayer-data guidance.
- Owner/licensee resident notice as soon as reasonably practicable and no later than 45 days after discovery or notification of the breach when notice is required; a service provider that maintains data it does not own or license must notify the owner/licensee as soon as practicable and no later than 10 days.
- Notify the Maryland Office of the Attorney General before giving resident notice; include the number of affected Maryland residents, when and how the breach occurred, response steps, and the sample notice or form of notice to residents.
- The WISP should preserve evidence, remediation steps, and annual review records.
Do Maryland tax preparers need a WISP?
Yes, if they are covered by the FTC Safeguards Rule or IRS tax-data security expectations, they should maintain a written plan. Maryland state breach-notice duties make incident planning especially important.
The WISP should start with federal obligations because the Safeguards Rule supplies the security-program structure.
Maryland requires a business to notify the Office of the Attorney General before sending required notices to affected Maryland residents, including resident count, breach description, response steps, and the form or sample of resident notice.
What is specific to Maryland?
Owner/licensee resident notice as soon as reasonably practicable and no later than 45 days after discovery or notification of the breach when notice is required; a service provider that maintains data it does not own or license must notify the owner/licensee as soon as practicable and no later than 10 days. The plan should identify who evaluates state notice, who contacts counsel, and where the decision record is kept.
State breach-notification law does not replace the Safeguards Rule. It adds a state-specific response layer when an incident affects Maryland residents.
Maryland residents whose personal information was, or is reasonably believed to have been, acquired by an unauthorized person after a good-faith investigation determines likely misuse, unless a documented no-notice determination applies.
Notify the Maryland Office of the Attorney General before giving resident notice; include the number of affected Maryland residents, when and how the breach occurred, response steps, and the sample notice or form of notice to residents.
What should the WISP say?
It should describe real safeguards, assign responsibility, map vendors and systems, and include an incident-response path that reaches state-law review quickly.
For a small firm, the strongest plan is plain and evidence-backed: MFA records, backup tests, access reviews, training, vendor lists, and remediation dates.
The plan should never promise a control that is not actually in place.
| Topic | Maryland planning note | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Federal WISP | Use 16 CFR Part 314 as the program backbone | WISP and annual review |
| IRS tax data | Account for taxpayer records, PTIN practice, portals, and e-file workflows | System inventory and access list |
| Breach notice | Owner/licensee resident notice as soon as reasonably practicable and no later than 45 days after discovery or notification of the breach when notice is required; a service provider that maintains data it does not own or license must notify the owner/licensee as soon as practicable and no later than 10 days. | Incident clock and counsel review record |
| Regulator path | Notify the Maryland Office of the Attorney General before giving resident notice; include the number of affected Maryland residents, when and how the breach occurred, response steps, and the sample notice or form of notice to residents. | Notification decision log |
| State statute | Md. Code, Com. Law § 14-3504 | Source URL retained in page sources |
FAQ
Is this legal advice?
No. Policywright is a configurable template product, not a law firm and not legal advice. A qualified lawyer should review state-law reliance or breach-notification decisions.
Does a small firm still need a written plan?
Yes. The Safeguards Rule requires a written information security program for covered financial institutions, and IRS guidance tells paid tax preparers to maintain a written data security plan.
What if a control is not in place yet?
A serious WISP should not pretend. It should identify the gap, assign an owner, set a target date, and preserve a dated remediation record.
Does Maryland have its own WISP law?
This page does not claim a standalone Maryland WISP statute for every firm. It explains how federal WISP duties should be paired with Maryland breach-notification planning.
Who reviews Maryland breach notice?
The incident plan should route state-law decisions through qualified counsel and preserve any Maryland Office of the Attorney General regulator-notice analysis.
Sources
- FTC Safeguards Rule, 16 CFR Part 314 (eCFR)
- FTC, Safeguards Rule: What Your Business Needs to Know
- FTC, Safeguards Rule notification requirement now in effect (16 CFR 314.4(j), eff. May 13, 2024)
- IRS Publication 5708, Creating a Written Information Security Plan
- IRS Publication 4557, Safeguarding Taxpayer Data
- IRS Form W-12, PTIN Application and Renewal
- IRS Publication 1345, Handbook for Authorized IRS e-file Providers
- Maryland Commercial Law § 14-3504
- Maryland OAG business guidance for the Personal Information Protection Act
- Maryland OAG security breach notices
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