Cyber criminals target unsuspecting people with messages to link Aadhaar and PAN

BENGALURU: Prior to the Union government extending the March 30 deadline to link Aadhaar and PAN, cyber criminals took advantage of the last-minute rush and scammed many people by sending links to their mobile phones in the city.

Now, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has extended the time for linking PAN and Aadhaar until June 30 and after the extension, traffic on the website has decreased. But a new problem has arisen with cyber criminals sending fake messages to people’s mobile phones to link their Aadhaar number and PAN.

A new problem has arisen after some cyber criminals sent fake messages to people’s mobile phones.

To avoid falling into this trap, cyber experts have suggested some methods to check whether PAN and Aadhaar cards are linked. They are as follows:

Type a message in the format UIDPAN  and then send the message to 56161 or 567678 from your registered mobile number.  You will get a confirmation message about linking your Aadhar with PAN.

People can check it on the website of the Income Tax Department.

Check at the PAN Service Centre.

Dr Ananth Prabhu, cyber law and security expert.

“Earlier, the government had announced that by 2022, citizens should link their Aadhaar and PAN cards. Also, it had announced a Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 penalty and that it would block or disable the account if it was not done on time. You can check the Income Tax Department’s website or send a message through the PAN Service Centre. Many cyber criminals send links and many ransomware attacks are happening. Cyber criminals steal private data, and send links to scam people of their money”, said Dr Ananth Prabhu, cyber law and security expert.