IT Refund Scam: 5 Signs Your Email Is Fake

Fraudsters are sending fake Income Tax Department emails and creating lookalike websites to steal your PAN, bank details, and tax refunds. Here is how to spot a scam and what to do if you get targeted.

Here's what happened: Fraudsters are impersonating the Income Tax Department via fake emails and cloned websites to harvest PAN numbers, bank account details, and OTPs from taxpayers.. These scam messages typically promise pending refunds, warn of account suspension, or claim a tax notice has been issued — all designed to trigger panic and immediate action.. The real Income Tax Department only uses the official portal incometax.gov.in for refunds and notices; it never asks for passwords, OTPs, or full bank account numbers over email..

What you should do: Check your actual refund status by logging directly into incometax.gov.in — never through a link in any email, SMS, or WhatsApp message.. Report suspicious emails or fake websites immediately at cybercrime.gov.in (National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal) and forward the email to incident@cert-in.org.in.. Call your bank's 24-hour fraud helpline within 30 minutes of sharing any sensitive details on a suspicious site — early reporting can trigger a zero-liability freeze on your account..

Pro tip: The IT Department's official helpline is 1800-103-0025. If you receive a suspicious notice, call this number to verify whether it is genuine before taking any action.

For readers weighing their credit and loan options, our personal loan guide and CIBIL score resources put this update in context.