Filing your Illinois taxes online is generally a good way to go. It’s pretty easy, it’s quick and — if you use the Department of Revenue’s “MyTax Illinois” program — it’s free.

But there’s a little bug in the system right now that could cause filers new to MyTax Illinois to wind up filing late. And it behooves the Department of Revenue to make an effort to find a remedy.

Until this year, taxpayers could file form IL-1040 on MyTax Illinois without creating their own account. This year, registration is required and it’s for a good reason: Maura Kownacki, IDOR spokeswoman, says the department recently discovered some fraudulently filed Illinois tax returns that were not the result of a breach within the department.

Having to create an account is a practical solution to the problem of a few fraudulent returns, without making the system unduly cumbersome for everybody else. It’s not difficult to create an account. But to use the account, the applicant first must receive a “letter ID” from IDOR, and that can take up to 10 days.

For those filing at the last minute, they won’t have eight to 10 days to wait for their ID to arrive before their return is late.

Could IDOR push the deadline back for first-time electronic filers on MyTax Illinois who make a good-faith effort to hit the deadline? Or waive the penalty for those people? Or at least shoot them a form to file for an extension?

Getting taxpayers to register is a sound idea, and if it takes eight to 10 days to turn around the corresponding ID, so be it. All we’re asking is a little consideration for somebody who — despite IDOR’s attempts to reach everybody — remains in the dark until it is too late.