I need advice in finding a tax professional. I have only traded off and on for less than five years and all of my gains/losses in each of those years did not add up to a whole lot and there were not any real complications to deal with. I have always had a good handle on doing my taxes. This year, however, I have made some very stupid, idiotic trades and have lost big time. I am not very proud of myself for what I have done. I am very leery of becoming an object of ridicule among professionals who may happen to get a view of exactly what I did to lose such an amount of money. ANd although I can do my own taxes this time around with accuracy as i have done in previous years , given the amount of the loss I would like to get on the right path from the start in dealing with the loss and so must seek the expertise of a professional tax preparer preferably close to where I reside. I may go so far as finding a tax preparer in another state who may not have the casual convinience to trugde the details of my stupidity over cocktails to acquaintances of acquaintaces, know what I mean? Do Tax preparers have a professional code of conduct to abide by in terms of client privacy? What kinds of certifications do I look for to ensure that my personal information is protected securely? What other kinds of things should I take into consideration in selecting a tax professional to do my taxes? Thank you for your advice.