As the time to file Income Tax Returns approaches, be wary of emails claiming to be from the Income Tax Department as they could be from criminals preying on unsuspecting people.
A 38-year-old private firm employee fell victim to one such scam, which cost him ₹90,000 when he clicked on a link that he thought was from tax officials.
In his complaint to the police, Ritesh Kumar Sahay, who resides in Ulsoor, said he received an email from ‘info@etaxcpc.in’ with a letter from the I-T Department informing him that his bank account details were needed so that a sum of ₹22,924.94 could be returned to him as tax rebate.
Following the directions in the mail, Sahay clicked on a link that was part of the message. It took him to a site that asked him fill in personal details, including his PAN, Aadhaar and bank account details.
Within a few hours, Sahay was notified that a sum of ₹90,000 had been withdrawn from his account via several online transactions. It was only when he approached the I-T Department that he realised that he had fallen victim to a phishing scam.
On Thursday, he approached the cybercrime police and lodged a complaint.
According to the police, this is one of the most common forms of phishing. “By convincing people that they are from the I-T Department, conmen get bank details, credit card numbers and personal information. We have sought details of the money withdrawn to track down the accused,” a senior police officer said.
