PAN Card Blocked SMS Scam by email

How it looks by email, the red flags and what to do.

Email is slower than SMS, so these scams usually pretend to be a bill, a refund, an account lock or a job offer and ask you to log in or open a file. PAN Card Blocked SMS Scam is one of the ways this shows up: A text claims your PAN will be blocked unless you update it now. The link is a fake form that takes bank login details and OTPs.

What pan card blocked sms scam looks like by email

• A sender address that is almost, but not exactly, the real domain.
• A button that says "Verify account" or "View invoice".
• An attachment such as a PDF, ZIP or HTML file you did not expect.

The scammer picks PAN because almost every adult has one and knows it is tied to tax, banking and investing. The message mixes official words such as verification, linkage and compliance. It may say the PAN will become inoperative, which sounds plausible to anyone who has heard about deadlines. The sender is a mobile number or a lookalike header, and the link is shortened.

Red flags to check on the email

• It says your PAN is blocked or will be blocked.
• It uses a shortened link instead of a clear official address.
• It asks for net banking login details to update a PAN.
• The message has a 24 hour or same-day deadline.
• Hover over the link: the address does not match the company website.
• The email asks you to log in through the link rather than through the official app.

What to do

1. Do not open the link or call back any number in the message.
2. Check your PAN status only on the official income tax e-filing website typed by hand.
3. Tell your bank through its official app if you think the message mentioned your account.
4. Go to the company website by typing it yourself and check your account there.
5. Check the full sender address, not just the display name.
6. Report it as phishing in your email app and delete it.

Use Report phishing in your email app. If money or accounts are affected, call 1930 and report at cybercrime.gov.in.

If money or a code is already gone

1. Call 1930 immediately and give the transaction details.
2. Call the number printed on your card or passbook to block net banking and cards.
3. Report at cybercrime.gov.in and note the acknowledgement number.
4. Change passwords on any account that shared the same login, starting with email.

National Cyber Crime Helpline: 1930; report at cybercrime.gov.in.

With Safeavio Sentinel you can paste or share the message into the scam check and get a verdict with reasons such as fake authority, a threat and a request for login details. Pasting the link into the link check helps you spot shortened or lookalike addresses. The password exposure check can show whether a password has appeared in known leaks. It cannot confirm your real PAN status. That has to be checked on the official site.

Full guide: PAN Card Blocked SMS Scam: how it works, signs and what to do. Other channels: SMS, WhatsApp.

Questions