Skip to main content

Beware of fake income tax e-mails


Log into your e-filing account to check if you have any outstanding demand or refund
If you receive an email claiming to be from the income tax (I-T) department that there’s an outstanding tax demand that you need to pay immediately, don’t get alarmed. 
Get cautious. In all probability, that email is from cyber criminals, trying to trick you into revealing your bank account details.
Experts say there has been an exponential rise in such emails in the past month. “Cyber criminals are sending these emails in July as it’s the time when most people file returns and tax is on their minds,” says Amarpal Chadha, tax partner and India mobility leader, EY. He says his clients have also received emails stating there is a refund pending with the I-T department and the recipient can claim it instantly.
These emails provide a link the receiver needs to click to pay the outstanding tax demand or get the refund. Once an individual clicks on it, he is redirected to a web page that looks similar to the I-T department’s website. The individual is asked to select his bank and is redirected to another fake bank website. At this stage, as the victim tries to log into his bank account, cyber criminals capture sensitive details.
At times, the hackers are already aware of the bank account the taxpayer uses. When the individual clicks on the link provided in the email, he is taken directly to a fake website of the bank.
Recognising such fraudulent emails is not difficult. The first thing to look at is the email address. The email might seem to be originating from incometaxindia.gov.in but many service providers, such as Gmail, inform the user if it actually originated from that website. You will see such emails will have ‘via’ right after the email address, and then the name of the server. This means the email was sent via another mail service.
The I-T department sends emails from the following IDs: donotreply@incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in , intimations@cpc. gov.in, and campaign@cpc.gov.in. The fraudulent emails in circulation at present are from donotreply@incometaxindiafiling.gov.in. But some technologies can help scammers to send emails that seem to be from the official addresses.
The Business Standard, New Delhi, 27th July 2017

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Budget: Startup sector gets new Fund of Funds, FM to allocate Rs 10K cr

  The Indian startup sector received a boost with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announcing the establishment of a new fund of funds (FoF) in the Budget 2025. The minister unveiled a fresh FoF with an expanded scope, allocating Rs 10,000 crore. The initial fund of funds announced by the government with an investment of Rs 10,000 crore successfully catalysed commitments worth Rs 91,000 crore, the minister said.   “The renewal of the Rs 10,000 crore commitment to the Fund of Funds for alternative investment funds (AIFs) is a significant step forward for the Indian startup and investment ecosystem. The initial Rs 10,000 crore commitment catalysed Rs 91,000 crore in investments, and I fully expect this fresh infusion to attract an additional Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh crore in capital,” said Anirudh Damani, managing partner, Artha Venture Funds.   Damani further added that this initiative will provide much-needed growth capital to early-stage startups, further strengthenin...

After RBI rate cut, check latest home loan interest rates of top banks for loans above Rs 75 lakh

  The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has reduced the repo rate by 25 basis points from 6.50% to 6.25% in its monetary policy review as announced on February 7, 2025. After the RBI repo rate cut, banks such as SBI, Canara Bank, PNB, and Union Bank among others have cut their repo linked lending rates. Most other banks are also expected to cut their lending rates in line with the RBI rate cut. After banks cut their lending rates, their home loan borrowers will have to pay less interest. Normally, when a lender cuts the lending rate, borrowers get two options: Either to go for a reduction in EMIs or reduce the tenure of the loan. The second option will help the borrowers clear their home loan outstanding faster. In case, the borrower goes for reduction in EMI then the lower lending rate of the lender would mean lower Equated Monthly Installment (EMI) for borrowers.   EMI is the amount you will pay on a specific date each month till the loan is repaid in full.A repo rate-linked home ...

GST collections rise 9.9% to exceed Rs 1.96 trillion in March 2025

  Gross GST collection in March grew 9.9 per cent to over Rs 1.96 lakh crore, government data showed on Tuesday. GST revenue from domestic transactions rose 8.8 per cent to Rs 1.49 lakh crore, while revenue from imported goods was higher 13.56 per cent to Rs 46,919 crore. Total refunds during March rose 41 per cent to Rs 19,615 crore. After adjusting refunds, net GST revenue stood at over Rs 1.76 lakh crore in March 2025, a 7.3 per cent growth over the year-ago period.       - Business Standard 02 th March, 2025