Privacy Policy

Sandra Tapia, CPA, PLLC

Sandra Tapia, CPA, PLLC, which also operates informally under the name Tapia Business Management (“the Firm,” “we,” “us,” or “our”), respects your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains what personal information we collect through https://stapiacpa.com/ (the “Site”) and our related web forms, client portal, and text messaging program, how we use it, who we share it with, and the choices available to you. This Policy should be read together with our Terms and Conditions.
Terms and Conditions: https://stapiacpa.com/terms-and-conditions/

1. Information We Collect

We collect the following categories of personal information:

  • Contact information you provide, such as your name, mailing address, email address, and phone number (including when you opt in to SMS text messages).
  • Information submitted through web forms, appointment requests, our client portal, or email, which may include tax, financial, or business information you choose to share with us in connection with our services.
  • Account and login information if you register for or use our client portal.
  • Payment information necessary to process billing for services (processed by our payment provider; we do not store full card numbers).
  • Technical and usage information collected automatically, such as IP address, browser type, device information, and pages visited, including through cookies (see Section 5).
  • Comments or content you voluntarily submit on the Site.

Please avoid submitting highly sensitive information (such as Social Security numbers, EINs, bank account numbers, or copies of government-issued identification) through general website contact forms. If we need this type of information from you, we will direct you to our secure client portal or another protected channel rather than a public web form.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use personal information to:

  • Provide, manage, and communicate with you about the accounting, tax, and advisory services you request.
  • Schedule appointments and send reminders, confirmations, and account or billing notifications, including by SMS text message where you have opted in.
  • Respond to inquiries submitted through our contact forms or client portal.
  • Process payments for services rendered.
  • Maintain the security of our Site and client portal, and prevent fraud.
  • Comply with applicable legal, regulatory, and professional obligations (including IRS and Texas State Board of Public Accountancy requirements).
  • With your consent, send you marketing or informational communications, which you may opt out of at any time.

3. SMS / Text Messaging Privacy

If you opt in to receive text messages from us through a web form, our client portal, or otherwise, we use your mobile phone number and the content of those messages solely to communicate with you about your engagement with the Firm, as described in our SMS Terms of Service.

SMS consent is not shared with third parties or affiliates. We do not sell, rent, or share your mobile phone number or SMS opt-in status with any third party or affiliate for their own marketing purposes. Your mobile information is used only to send you the text messages you have consented to receive and for related customer service.

Message frequency may vary; message and data rates may apply. Text STOP to opt out at any time, or text HELP for assistance. See our full SMS Terms of Service for details on message types.

4. Who We Share Your Information With

We do not sell your personal information. We may share personal information with:

  • Service providers who perform functions on our behalf, such as our website hosting provider, email and SMS messaging platform, client portal/document-sharing provider, payment processor, and IT support vendors — each of whom is authorized to use your information only as needed to provide services to us.
  • Professional advisors, such as our attorneys or auditors, when necessary.
  • Government agencies or other parties when required by law, subpoena, or other legal process, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of the Firm, our clients, or others.
  • A successor entity in the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of all or part of our business, subject to this Policy.

As stated above, SMS consent and mobile phone numbers collected for text messaging are never shared with third parties or affiliates for marketing purposes.

5. Third-Party Systems and Cloud Platforms

We use third-party software providers to help operate our practice, including document management and client-portal platforms, client relationship management (CRM) and workflow-management tools, SMS and email messaging platforms, payment processors, and cloud hosting providers. Personal information, including tax, financial, and communication data, may be stored and processed through these providers as part of delivering our services to you. We select providers that offer appropriate contractual and technical safeguards, and these providers are authorized to use your information only as needed to provide their services to us.

6. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Our Site may use cookies and similar technologies to recognize your browser, remember preferences, and understand how visitors use the Site. You can set your browser to refuse cookies, though some features of the Site may not function properly as a result.

Blog comments: If you leave a comment on our blog, we collect the data shown in the comment form, along with your IP address and browser user agent string, to help with spam detection. You may opt in to saving your name, email address, and website in a cookie for your convenience so you do not have to re-enter this information when you leave another comment; these cookies last approximately one year. An anonymized hash created from your email address may be shared with the Gravatar service (see https://automattic.com/privacy/) to check whether you use it, and if your comment is approved, your Gravatar profile picture will be visible publicly alongside your comment.

Login and account cookies: If you log in to our website or client portal, we set cookies to save your login information and screen display choices. Login cookies last two days, and screen-option cookies last about a year; selecting “Remember Me” extends your login session to two weeks. These cookies are removed when you log out. A temporary cookie containing no personal data is also set on our login page to check whether your browser accepts cookies.

Media: If you upload images to the Site, avoid uploading images that include embedded location data (EXIF GPS), as visitors may be able to download and extract that location data from images on the Site.

7. Data Security

We use commercially reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect personal information from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. In the event of a data security incident that compromises your personal information, we will investigate and provide notification as required by applicable Texas and federal law.

8. Data Retention

We retain personal information for as long as necessary to provide our services, comply with our legal and professional recordkeeping obligations (which for tax and accounting records may extend several years under IRS and Texas requirements), resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. Blog comments and their metadata are generally retained indefinitely so we can recognize and approve follow-up comments automatically, unless you request deletion. If you request a password reset for the client portal or website account, your IP address is included in the reset email for security purposes.

9. Your Privacy Rights

Depending on your state of residence, you may have the right to request access to, correction of, or deletion of the personal information we hold about you, and to opt out of certain uses of your information. Texas residents may have rights under the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act. To make a request, contact us using the information in Section 13. We will respond consistent with applicable law. Please note that we may need to retain certain information to comply with legal, tax, or professional recordkeeping obligations even after a deletion request.

10. Children’s Privacy

Our Site and services are not directed to individuals under the age of 18, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children.

11. Third-Party Links and Embedded Content

Our Site may contain links to third-party websites or embedded content (such as videos or social media posts). We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those third parties, and we encourage you to review their privacy policies.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated effective date. Your continued use of the Site or our services after a change is posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated Policy.

13. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or wish to exercise any privacy rights, contact us at:
Sandra Tapia, CPA, PLLC
5616 Pine Ave., Pasadena, TX 77503 | 3001 E Broadway St, Pearland, TX 77581
Phone: 832-672-7530
Email: brandon@stapiacpa.com