Pancard Scam Alert! How to Spot and Protect Yourself from this fraud

PAN Card, or Permanent Account Number card, is an essential document for all adult Indians. But sadly, these days the same PAN card is being misused by scammers to scam and loot innocent people. Scammers are going brutal these days and we should remain aware each minute. Read along so that you do not end up getting scammed this way.

First, let us understand how our PAN cards are being misused. Scammers use it for criminal activities including financial and identity theft. The PAN Card is further used for wrong activities, to fraud someone via fraudulent loan applications, bank openings, OTP scams, fraud credit card applications, etc.

Now, in some cases, you might not know that your PAN Card is being misused. Here’s how you can check that.

Also read: Beware! This message on your iPhone could be a scam

Follow these steps to check if your PAN card is being misused

1. First, you need to check your credit score.
2. For that, enter your details and verify your OTP.
3. Your credit scores will show if there are any unwanted activities linked to your PAN card.

If you find yourself in the middle of a scam, then the first step is to report it.

Follow these steps to report a PAN Card scam

1. Go to the Tax Information Network Portal.
2. Find the Customer Care section and click on it.
3. Click on Complaints/Queries.
4. Now, fill out the entire complaint form.
5. Next, verify the captcha and verify the form.

Just make sure that you do not enter your details on unwanted websites, unnecessary places, etc. Scammers are getting very smart and we need to be very vigilant.