Calling the messages fake, PIB Fact Check said Income Tax department has not sent this message to anyone. 
Calling the messages fake, PIB Fact Check said Income Tax department has not sent this message to anyone. Fake messages claiming that taxpayers have received an income tax refund of Rs 15,490 are doing rounds and have gone viral. PIB Fact Check, a fact-checking unit of the Press Information Bureau, has issued a clarification in this regard so that taxpayers don't fall for hoax IT refund scams.
In a tweet, PIB Fact Check said the Income Tax department has not issued such messages to anyone as of now.
According to a PIB tweet, the message reads: “You have been approved a tax refund of Rs 15,490 and the amount will be credited to your account number 5xxxxx6755. If this is not correct please update your bank account information by visiting the link below.”
PIB Fact Check said that everyone should be aware of such scams and refrain from sharing any personal information.
It is noted that the I-T department does not request detailed personal information through e-mail and does not send e-mails requesting your PIN numbers, passwords, or similar access information for credit cards, banks, or other financial accounts.
The Income Tax department has said that taxpayers should not click on such fake messages or open any attachments.
According to the Income tax website, “If you receive an e-mail or find a website you think is pretending to be of Income Tax Department, forward the e-mail or website URL to webmanager@incometax.gov.in. A copy may also be forwarded to incident@cert-in.org.in. You may forward the message as received or provide the Internet header of the e-mail. The Internet header has additional information to help us locate the sender. After you forward the e-mail or header information to us, delete the message.”
Fake ITR messages
"If you receive an e-mail from someone claiming to be the authorized by Income Tax Department or directing you to an Income Tax website, do not reply. Do not open any attachments. Attachments may contain malicious code that will infect your computer. Do not click on any links. If you clicked on links in a suspicious e-mail or phishing website then do not enter confidential information like bank account, credit card details," the Income Tax department said.
"Do not cut and paste the link from the message into your browser. Phishers can make link look like real, but it actually send you to different websites.
“Use anti-virus software, anti spyware, and a firewall and keep them updated. Some phishing e-mails contain software that can harm your computer or track your activities on the internet without your knowledge. Anti-virus & Anti-spyware software and firewall can protect you from inadvertently accepting such unwanted files," it said.
ITR refund status
As per government rules, the Income Tax department sends the refund after the IT return is duly processed. In case the ITR is not processed and the tax department needs additional information, it sends an alert to the taxpayer on his registered phone number and email id.
The ITR refund is usually issued within 7 to 120 days from the date the return was filed. One can check ITR status by logging in. One can avail additional information like downloading the return / intimation if you check your ITR status post-login.
How to check ITR status online
One can check his or her ITR status by logging in on the government's new income tax portal.
1. Visit www.incometax.gov.in and log in to your account by entering PAN/Aadhaar number as user ID, and your password.
2. After logging in click on 'e-file' option.
3. Select 'Income tax returns' and then select 'View Filed returns'.
4. Check the latest ITR filed.
5. Select 'View Details' option. There one can see the status of the ITR filed once it has been chosen.
6. Besides, it will display the date on which tax refunds were issued as well as the amount and date on which they were cleared.
Also read: Record 6.77 crore ITRs filed for FY23 till July 31: Income Tax Dept
Also read: Filed ITR before July 31? Missing the verification deadline can cost you Rs 5,000
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