How GFG Protects Your Financial Information
GFG Financial uses secure practices to protect your personal and financial information.
Security & privacy
We Treat Your Data Like the License Depends on It Because It Does.
You hand your accountant more sensitive information than almost anyone else you do business with. Here is how we treat that responsibility — in plain language, not legal boilerplate.
If anything on this page raises a question, ask us directly. That is part of the service.
What we collect
What Information Do We Collect, and Why?
How it's handled
How Is Your Data Stored and Shared?
Sensitive documents move through a secure client portal, not email attachments — we avoid email for sensitive material wherever possible. For tax documents, that portal is SmartVault; if you are not sure how to reach yours, call the office and we will send you a fresh invitation. Our client work programs and software all require multi-factor authentication, and client information is shared only as the engagement requires — filings with the IRS or state agencies, payroll processing, insurance carriers you have engaged — or as the law requires.
We do not share client information for marketing. Not with partners, not with advertisers, not with anyone.
Who sees it
Who at GFG Can See Your Information?
The professionals assigned to your account. GFG runs on a dedicated-team model, and that doubles as a privacy control: your information is handled by named people who know your business — not passed through an anonymous queue.
How long we keep it
How Long Do We Keep Your Records?
Seven years. We keep copies of anything we file — and anything we use to prepare a filing — for the full seven years, even if you discontinue services with us. After the seven-year retention window, we may archive or remove client records at our discretion, and you can request removal of your information from our systems once that window has passed. And your records are yours: we return or transfer them on request, and we will coordinate directly with your new provider if that is easier for you.
If something looks wrong
What Should You Do If a Message From “GFG” Looks Off?
Call us before you act: (509) 582-2047. Financial firms are a favorite disguise for phishing. If you get an unexpected email asking for credentials, payment changes, or urgent wire instructions that claims to be from GFG, do not reply and do not click — call the office and read it to us. We would rather take a hundred false-alarm calls than have one client caught.
And so the fakes are easier to spot: GFG will never email you asking for your password, your full Social Security number, or your online banking login. If a message asks for any of those, it did not come from us.
F.A.Q.
Security and Privacy, Answered
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Client information is shared only as your engagement requires — tax filings, payroll processing, carriers you have engaged — or as the law requires.
Through the secure client portal — for tax documents, that is SmartVault. If you are unsure, call and we will walk you through it, or send you a fresh invitation. We avoid email for sensitive material.
They are yours. We return or transfer them on request. We retain copies of anything we filed for you — and anything used to prepare it — for seven years, then may archive or remove records at our discretion. You can request removal of your information after that window.
Questions about security