PAN Card Fraud: How to Check and Report Misuse of PAN Card?

PAN card fraud occurs when someone illegally uses your Permanent Account Number (PAN) for financial or identity-related fraud. PAN card misuse can result in unauthorised loans, bank accounts, credit cards, or high-value transactions being linked to your name. Understanding the misuse of PAN card, knowing how to check for suspicious activity, and filing a PAN card misuse complaint promptly can help protect your financial identity.

Key Highlights

• PAN Card Fraud: PAN card fraud occurs when someone uses your PAN without your consent for financial or identity-related fraud.
• PAN Card Misuse: Misuse of a PAN card may include unauthorised loans, bank accounts, credit cards, or high-value purchases.
• Detection: Regularly review your credit report and Annual Information Statement (AIS) to identify suspicious transactions.
• Complaint: If you notice PAN card misuse, report it immediately to the concerned bank, the National Cyber Crime Portal, and the Income Tax Department, if required.

What is PAN Card Fraud and its Potential Consequences?

A PAN card fraud means that someone has used your PAN card for criminal activities. It can be used to impersonate you as well. In most of the worst-case scenarios, misuse of your PAN card has turned towards financial crime.

Examples of PAN Card Fraud Cases

Here are some examples of PAN card misuse:

• Someone could use your PAN to take loans. Then, the responsibility to repay the loans will fall upon you.
• A criminal can open a bank account with your PAN and use it for fraud. As your PAN card is used for the scam, ultimately, you will be the one coming under the radar.
• You could receive an SMS asking you to update your PAN. Such messages often contain a link which you have to tap. After you enter the required OTP, you could end up losing money.
• In a real-life example, cyber criminals once got credit cards issued in the name of celebrities by using their PAN details.
• Criminals can buy jewellery by using your PAN information.

PAN Card Misuse Complaint

If you discover that your PAN card has been misused, take the following steps immediately to report Pan card fraud:

Step 1: Report the incident on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal or visit the nearest cyber crime police station.

Step 2: Inform the concerned bank, NBFC, or financial institution if the fraud involves an unauthorised loan, credit card, or bank account.

Step 3: Raise a dispute with the concerned credit bureau if fraudulent credit accounts or enquiries appear in your credit report.

Step 4: If the misuse has tax implications, contact your jurisdictional Income Tax Assessing Officer and retain all supporting documents.

How to Check Misuse of PAN Card?

Here’s how you can check for misuse of PAN card:

Step 1: Visit a credit bureau website to check your credit score.

Step 2: Search for the option to check your credit score.

Step 3: Enter your data, including your financial information.

Step 4: Verify the OTP sent to your phone.

Step 5: Download your detailed credit report and review the loan accounts, credit cards, and credit enquiry sections for any accounts or enquiries you do not recognise. A credit score alone cannot confirm whether your PAN card has been misused.

You should also review your Annual Information Statement (AIS) on the Income Tax e-Filing portal to check for unfamiliar high-value financial transactions linked to your PAN.

How to Avoid PAN Card Fraud?

Here are some ways in which you can avoid PAN card fraud:

• Before sharing your PAN details online, verify that you are using the official website. While 'https' indicates that the connection is encrypted, it does not guarantee that the website is genuine. Always check the website's domain name before entering sensitive information.
• Whenever you submit a photocopy of your PAN card, self-attest it and clearly mention the purpose, organisation name, and date on the copy to reduce the risk of misuse.
• Don’t enter your full name and date of birth on suspicious websites.
• Regularly review your detailed credit report to identify any unauthorised loans, credit cards, or credit enquiries linked to your PAN.
• Regularly review your Annual Information Statement (AIS) on the Income Tax e-Filing portal to monitor high-value financial transactions linked to your PAN.

PAN card fraud and PAN card misuse can have serious financial and legal consequences if left unnoticed. Regularly monitoring your credit report and Annual Information Statement (AIS), safeguarding your PAN details, and filing a PAN card misuse complaint immediately in case of suspicious activity can help protect your financial identity and prevent further misuse of your PAN card.

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