WISP requirements in New Hampshire
New Hampshire’s response file should be built around the initial misuse determination and the regulator split. A Policywright New Hampshire workflow should preserve the misuse analysis, individual-notice date, whether a primary regulator or the Attorney General was notified, the approximate New Hampshire resident count reported, maintainer cooperation records, substitute-notice threshold analysis at $5,000 or 1,000 affected individuals, and the consumer-reporting-agency notice decision.
Key facts
- New Hampshire firms should keep a written security program tied to the FTC Safeguards Rule and IRS taxpayer-data guidance.
- Promptly determine misuse likelihood after awareness of a breach; individual notice as soon as possible after the determination; maintainer notice and cooperation immediately after discovery if personal information was acquired by an unauthorized person; law-enforcement, national-security, or homeland-security delay may apply; CRA notice applies for more than 1,000 consumers.
- Notify the primary regulator if the person is subject to one; otherwise notify the New Hampshire Attorney General’s office, including the anticipated date of individual notice and approximate number of New Hampshire individuals to be notified, without providing names or personal information of the affected individuals.
Key takeaways
- New Hampshire firms should keep a written security program tied to the FTC Safeguards Rule and IRS taxpayer-data guidance.
- Promptly determine misuse likelihood after awareness of a breach; individual notice as soon as possible after the determination; maintainer notice and cooperation immediately after discovery if personal information was acquired by an unauthorized person; law-enforcement, national-security, or homeland-security delay may apply; CRA notice applies for more than 1,000 consumers.
- Notify the primary regulator if the person is subject to one; otherwise notify the New Hampshire Attorney General’s office, including the anticipated date of individual notice and approximate number of New Hampshire individuals to be notified, without providing names or personal information of the affected individuals.
- The WISP should preserve evidence, remediation steps, and annual review records.
Do New Hampshire 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. New Hampshire 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.
New Hampshire requires regulator notice when individual notice will be sent: regulated persons notify their primary regulator, and all other persons notify the New Hampshire Attorney General’s office with the anticipated individual-notice date and approximate number of New Hampshire individuals to be notified.
What is specific to New Hampshire?
Promptly determine misuse likelihood after awareness of a breach; individual notice as soon as possible after the determination; maintainer notice and cooperation immediately after discovery if personal information was acquired by an unauthorized person; law-enforcement, national-security, or homeland-security delay may apply; CRA notice applies for more than 1,000 consumers. 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 New Hampshire residents.
Affected New Hampshire individuals after a prompt determination finds that misuse of personal information occurred or is reasonably likely to occur, or when the person cannot determine whether misuse occurred or is reasonably likely.
Notify the primary regulator if the person is subject to one; otherwise notify the New Hampshire Attorney General’s office, including the anticipated date of individual notice and approximate number of New Hampshire individuals to be notified, without providing names or personal information of the affected individuals.
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 | New Hampshire 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 | Promptly determine misuse likelihood after awareness of a breach; individual notice as soon as possible after the determination; maintainer notice and cooperation immediately after discovery if personal information was acquired by an unauthorized person; law-enforcement, national-security, or homeland-security delay may apply; CRA notice applies for more than 1,000 consumers. | Incident clock and counsel review record |
| Regulator path | Notify the primary regulator if the person is subject to one; otherwise notify the New Hampshire Attorney General’s office, including the anticipated date of individual notice and approximate number of New Hampshire individuals to be notified, without providing names or personal information of the affected individuals. | Notification decision log |
| State statute | N.H. Rev. Stat. § 359-C:20 | 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 New Hampshire have its own WISP law?
This page does not claim a standalone New Hampshire WISP statute for every firm. It explains how federal WISP duties should be paired with New Hampshire breach-notification planning.
Who reviews New Hampshire breach notice?
The incident plan should route state-law decisions through qualified counsel and preserve any New Hampshire Attorney General / primary regulator 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
- New Hampshire RSA 359-C:20
- New Hampshire RSA Chapter 359-C
- New Hampshire Department of Justice consumer protection
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