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India, as well as the rest of the world, is witnessing a sharp rise in scam cases and every other day, news reports have some new scam story. Scammers tend to pry on innocent, unsuspecting people and rob them of their hard-earned money in most cases. Now that the date of filing Income Tax Return in India has just passed, scammers have found a new way to cheat people. The <keyword id="19903456" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="income-tax-department" source="keywords">Income Tax department</keyword>, on its official website, issued a warning to <keyword id="20081991" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="taxpayers" source="keywords">taxpayers</keyword> that cautions them to stay safe from <keyword id="20313006" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="scams" source="keywords">scams</keyword>. As per the website, scammers are approaching people via calls and messages. So if you are also waiting for your income tax refund, beware of these two scams. <h2>Scam 1: Fake calls and urgent payment demands</h2> The IT department has made it clear that it does not contact taxpayers via phone to demand immediate payments. Any such calls should be regarded with suspicion and reported to the authorities. "Don't trust unsolicited calls! The Income Tax Department will not call you to make immediate payment," reads a prominent banner on the IT department's official website. This message aims to reassure taxpayers that any pressure to make hasty payments over the phone is a scam. So, what should you do if you encounter a suspicious call? You can report it immediately through the IT department’s official website. This helps authorities track and address these fraudulent activities, protecting more people from falling victim to scams. <h2>Scam 2: <keyword id="21798978" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="fraudulent-messages" source="keywords">Fraudulent messages</keyword></h2> In addition to <keyword id="19973064" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="phone-scams" source="keywords">phone scams</keyword>, there has been a surge in fraudulent messages claiming to offer tax refunds. These messages typically inform recipients that their Income Tax Return (<keyword id="19897621" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="itr" source="keywords">ITR</keyword>) has been approved and they are eligible for a refund. For example, Rs 15,000. The message includes a link to 'verify' the account number, but this is a trap designed to steal sensitive information. The IT department has issued a stern warning against such messages, with another banner on their website stating, "Don't fall for fake pop-ups! The Income Tax Department will never contact you through pop-up windows." A<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/personal-finance/top-5-personal-finance-scams-in-india-and-how-to-stay-safe-from-them/articleshow/112169370.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank"> typical scam message</a> might read: "You have been approved an Income Tax Refund of Rs 15,000/-. The amount will be credited to your account shortly. Please verify your account number 5XXXXX6777. If this is not correct, please update your bank account information by visiting the link below. https://bit.ly/20wpUUX" These messages are crafted to appear genuine, but they are fraudulent attempts to obtain personal and financial information. Taxpayers are urged to ignore such messages and refrain from clicking on any links or providing any personal details. The IT department also stressed on the importance of vigilance among taxpayers. You should always verify any communication from the IT department through official channels. The department communicates with taxpayers via their registered email addresses and not through unsolicited phone calls or messages. <h2>How to stay safe</h2><ol><li>Ignore suspicious calls and messages: If you receive a call or message demanding immediate payment or personal information, do not respond. Hang up the phone and do not click on any links in messages.</li><li>Verify through official channels: Cross-check any communication claiming to be from the IT department through their official website or contact their customer service for confirmation.</li><li>Report suspicious activities: Use the official reporting link provided by the IT department to report any suspicious calls or messages. This helps authorities track and prevent further fraudulent activities.</li><li>Do not share sensitive information: Never share your bank account details, credit card information, or any other personal data in response to unsolicited communications.</li></ol> <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="112216625" title="Thinking of getting a personal loan? Adani group might have something for you" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div>

Income Tax department issues warning to taxpayers, asks them to stay safe from ITR Refund scams

Cybercriminals are trying to lure Indian users into revealing important personal information with a new report on Monday warning that suspicious messages asking users to submit an application for the disbursement of income tax refund have been doing the rounds, with a link that directs users to a webpage looking like the income tax e-filing web page. The targeted banks in the campaign include the <keyword id="6354731" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="state-bank-of-india">State Bank of India</keyword>, ICICI, HDFC, <keyword id="6355975" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="axis-bank">Axis Bank</keyword> and <keyword id="62034" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Punjab-National-Bank">Punjab National Bank</keyword>, revealed an investigation by New Delhi-based think tank CyberPeace Foundation along with cybersecurity services firmAutobot Infosec. The suspicious links originate from the US and France, said the report, adding that the campaign is collecting personal as well as banking information from the user and getting into this type of trap could cause a massive financial loss for the users. The shared link with the SMS has no domain name and is not linked with the Indian government. All IP addresses associated with the campaign belong to some third party dedicated cloud hosting providers, said the report. The whole campaign uses plain http protocol instead of the secure https. This means anyone on the network or internet can intercept the traffic and get the confidential information in plain text to misuse against the victim. It asks users to download an application from a third party source instead of Google Playstore. The application asks to provide administrator rights and unnecessary access permissions of the device. On opening the link http://204.44.124[.]160/ITR, users are redirected to a landing page that is mostly similar to the government income tax e-filing website. On clicking the green 'Proceed to the verification steps' button, users are asked to submit personal information such as full name, PAN, Aadhar number, address, pincode, date of birth, mobile number, email address, gender, marital status and banking information like account number, IFSC code, card number, expiry date, CVV/CVC and card PIN. Additionally, the bank name is automatically detected from the IFSC code entered in the form. After submission of data, users are redirected to a page where they are asked to confirm the entered data. Clicking on the green 'confirm' button directs users to a fake banking login page almost similar to the official one. It asks for the username and password for online banking. After these details are entered, for the next step, users are asked to enter a Hint question, Answer, Profile password and CIF number. Once submitted, a mobile verification section with instructions provided to download an android application (.apk file) appears, to complete the ITR verification. Here, users are deliberately instructed to grant all device permissions to the particular application, the investigation revealed. The application, called Certificate.apk, starts downloading upon clicking the green 'Download' link. The overall layout and functionalities of the web page used in the campaign are similar to the official e-filing site to lure laymen, said the report. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/banks/news/bank-employees-in-india-on-strike-today-and-tomorrow-but-mobile-and-net-banking-services-are-working/articleshow/81505273.cms">Bank employees on strike today and tomorrow — ATMs, net and mobile banking likely to be the only relief</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/indias-personal-data-protection-law-versus-europes-gdpr/articleshow/81504058.cms">Being GDPR compliant doesn't necessarily make companies ready for India's upcoming data protection laws</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/stripe-the-most-valued-startup-in-the-us-to-offer-payment-services-to-indias-merchants-after-its-latest-fundraise/articleshow/81504106.cms">Stripe, the most valued startup in the US, to offer payment services to India’s merchants after its latest fundraise</a>

SBI, ICICI, HDFC, Axis Bank, PNB and the Indian IT department targeted in phishing scam

<ul><li>The <keyword id="6357713" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Uttar-Pradesh">Uttar Pradesh</keyword> government is cracking down on school teachers who are using fake degrees to land jobs in the state’s government schools. </li><li>As of now, the special task force has identified over 4,000 fake teachers — and they are expecting more. </li><li>The UP government spends roughly ₹150 billion (₹15,000 crore) on primary education and faculty. </li><li>As many as 60 government teachers — working on the basis of their fake B.Ed degrees — have been suspended so far.</li></ul>The Uttar Pradesh government is unearthing scams that involve using fake degrees to land jobs in government schools. Several cases of fake teachers have been reported in the state. And as of now, the special task force identified over 4,000 fake teachers — and they are expecting more. According to media reports, the UP government spends roughly <a href="https://khabar.ndtv.com/video/show/prime-time/fake-teachers-scam-in-uttar-pradesh-534014">₹150 billion on primary education</a> and faculty. While investigating, the government found out cases of <keyword id="429939" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Identity-theft">identity theft</keyword> as well. In one case, three ‘people’ from different districts were ‘employed’ on the basis of same Aadhar card and PAN card. The scam came to the fore when the real owner of the IDs filed an ITR and found that multiple accounts are being operated with his credentials. This comes in the backdrop of an ongoing debate on the state of education system in the state. A recent video of an <a href="https://www.news18.com/news/india/english-teacher-fails-to-read-textbook-during-surprise-check-at-up-school-video-goes-viral-2406359.html">English teacher struggling to read a textbook</a> in <keyword id="432256" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Unnao-district">Unnao district</keyword> of UP had gone viral across social media platforms. During the surprise inspection, the students fumbled while reading English textbooks. In fact, the BA pass teacher could not read a single sentence, after which Basic Shiksha Adhikari (BSA) was asked to suspend her. “She should be suspended immediately. She is an English teacher and she can’t even read English properly,” District Magistrate Devendra Kumar Pandey told News18. This is however not the only case. As many as<a href="https://www.ndtv.com/education/up-60-govt-school-teachers-suspended-for-getting-job-using-fake-qualifications-2103411"> 60 government teachers </a>— working on the basis of their fake B.Ed degrees and qualifications — have been suspended so far. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/education/news/on-national-education-day-heres-a-look-at-the-recent-reforms-in-india/articleshow/72001598.cms">On National Education Day, here’s a look at the recent reforms in India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/education/news/average-education-expenditure-in-india-increases-fourfold-to-8331-per-student/articleshow/72282009.cms">Indians are spending enormously on education even with few jobs in sight</a>

Fake B.Ed degrees, identity thefts and other scams that UP is unearthing at its schools

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Income Tax department issues warning to taxpayers, asks them to stay safe from ITR Refund scams

Divyanshi Sharma

SBI, ICICI, HDFC, Axis Bank, PNB and the Indian IT department targeted in phishing scam

IANS

Fake B.Ed degrees, identity thefts and other scams that UP is unearthing at its schools

Prerna Sindwani

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