The Income Tax Department has issued an urgent warning to taxpayers about a growing wave of fraudulent schemes designed to steal sensitive information under the guise of tax refund claims. These scams, which have become increasingly prevalent, involve deceptive phone calls, pop-up notifications, and fake messages on social media platforms, falsely asserting that individuals are eligible for tax refunds.
Taxpayers are being urged to carefully scrutinize and verify any communication that appears to be from the Income Tax Department. The department emphasized that it never requests credit card details, bank account information, or any other personal data via email. Under no circumstances should individuals respond to unsolicited emails or visit suspicious websites seeking such information.
Recent reports have highlighted a pattern of fraudulent messages sent to taxpayers’ mobile phones, with claims such as “Income Tax Refund is Due.” These messages often direct recipients to confirm or update their bank details through a provided link, which is typically fraudulent and should be ignored.
Scammers have been impersonating Income Tax Department officials, using phishing emails, misleading text messages, and fraudulent phone calls to deceive people into revealing confidential information or making monetary transactions. These illegal activities are aimed at compromising the financial and personal security of unsuspecting victims.
A particularly common scam involves a message stating, “You have been approved an income tax refund of Rs 15,000/-, the amount will be credited to your account shortly. Please verify your account number, 5XXXXX6777.” The message then directs the recipient to update their bank information via a link leading to a malicious website.
The Income Tax Department strongly advises taxpayers to exercise extreme caution with any email or communication claiming to offer a tax refund. According to the department, official tax refund information is communicated only through Income Tax Return (ITR) acknowledgement attachments and never through individual messages, emails, or phone calls.
To report any suspected scams or phishing attempts, taxpayers are encouraged to forward suspicious emails or website URLs to webmanager@incometax.gov.in and incident@cert-in.org.in for further investigation.
Additionally, taxpayers should bolster their digital security by avoiding engagement with suspicious emails, refraining from clicking on embedded links, and regularly updating their anti-virus software and firewalls to guard against potential malware and phishing threats.
