Fact Check: Is Income Tax dept giving Rs 41,104 refund seeking personal details?

As March 31 is approaching, taxpayers have already started planning for the next financial year. However, some people have received a mail, as shared by Press Information Bureau's (PIB's) Fact Check handle, claiming to provide them with a refund of Rs 41,104 in return for personal details.

The dubious email claims, "Attention! This is to inform you that the Income Tax Dept has officially completed the account-audit. You are entitled to an overdue refund of Rs 41,101.22 but one of your details is incorrect please see below to crosscheck and apply accordingly, Ensure you input your correct details."

The mail claimed that it is sent by the "Deputy Commission of Income Tax, Central Processing Center (CPC), Income Tax Dept, Banglore, Karnataka 560100, Govt of India."

PIB Fact Check: I-T dept giving a Rs 41,104 refund?

Busting the fake news, the PIB fact check handle said that the claim is fake. The Income Tax Department, which is headed by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), has not sent such emails. Income Tax e-Filing can be done on the official website- https://eportal.incometax.gov.in.

An E-mail claims that the recipient is entitled to a refund of ₹41, 104, and is seeking his/her personal details in the name of @IncomeTaxIndia#PIBFactCheck

✔️This claim is fake

✔️Report such suspicious emails at 'webmanager@incometax.gov.in​​​​' pic.twitter.com/bWgJT7iNbo

— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) March 20, 2023

The suspicious emails related to Income Tax can be reported at 'webmanager@incometax.gov.in. According to the IT department, it does not request detailed personal information through e-mail. It also does not send mail "requesting PIN numbers, passwords or similar access information for credit cards, banks or other financial accounts."

What to do on receiving suspicious mail claiming to be Income Tax dept?

• Do not reply.
• Do not open any attachments as they may contain malicious code that can infect your computer.
• Do not click on any links. If you accidentally clicked on links in a suspicious e-mail or phishing website then do not  share confidential information like details related to bank account and credit card
• Do not cut and paste the link from the message into your browsers, phishers can make the link look real, but it actually sends you to different websites.