Fake Income Tax Message: IT Department Issues Warning Against Phishing Through ITR SMS

New Delhi, December 14: A day after the Ministry of Finance extended the deadline to file an income tax return (ITR) before December 31, 2018, Income Tax department has warned citizens on Friday to stay away from phishing attacks through IT return messages.

People took to Twitter to react to messages they received and surprisingly the fake messages were delivered to the right person whose phone numbers is linked to the Income Tax e-filing account. Since phone number and the name of the person is accurate, there are high chances that people might tend to believe that the messages are not fake and originated from the IT department. Income Tax Returns Filing For 2017-18: Pay Fine of Rs 10000 if You Miss December 31, 2018 Deadline.

According to the reports, the person attacked by the rackets might get stolen by the miscreants with the banking login details. Along with the message, there is a bitty link to a fake SBI online banking website. As Income Tax Department never ask citizens to provide any banking details, the government department has urged people to be cautious.

In another move, the IT Department on Thursday have directed the people to file their ITR by month end, and else they will have to pay a penalty of Rs 10,000. The notification states that taxpayers would have to pay Rs 5,000, if they file ITR before December end, but if the taxpayer crosses the deadline, a fine of Rs 10,000 would be imposed on him/her.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 14, 2018 05:16 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).