Abstract: A system, method and computer program product for gathering complex structured information in an automated manner is disclosed, which may be substituted for an in-person interview between a trained professional interviewer possessing complex domain knowledge and an untrained consumer of professional services. The method involves sequential downloads of encrypted smart forms from a server to a consumer's computer, presentation of forms with contents tailored to the needs of the consumer as deduced from the consumer's responses to previous forms, validation and interpretation of the consumer's responses based on domain-specific and common-sense rules, a segregation of the consumer's responses into pieces requiring varying degrees of confidential or expedited handling, and an encrypted upload of the resulting information to a server.