Taxpayers warned: Income Tax Dept. flags fake email, SMS scams

• Income Tax Department cautions taxpayers, especially senior citizens, against a rise in fake emails, SMS, and websites impersonating the department to steal personal and financial information.
• Fraudsters use fake sender IDs, misleading links, and look-alike websites to trick individuals into revealing sensitive details like PAN, passwords, and OTPs.
• The Department emphasizes it never asks for OTPs, passwords, or confidential personal information via email, SMS, or phone calls.
• Taxpayers should only use the official portal (https://www.incometax.gov.in) and carefully check sender details before clicking any links.
• Suspicious phishing emails can be reported to [e-mail] and [e-mail]; official helpdesk numbers are also available.

Why It Matters: Protect your data from tax scams; stay vigilant against fake communications.