Scamsters drain out PF accounts with fake claims, EPFO swings into damage-control mode

Nearly 2.5 crore, or 30 per cent, of all provident fund accounts have a negative balance, some of which may be due to fraudsters who faked withdrawal claims to siphon off money by opening bank accounts using forged identity documents. The PF department, startled by these two separate findings made over the last few days, has swung into damage-control mode, issuing strict instructions to field offices to fix responsibility for these lapses, correct the spectre of negative balances and ensure that no fake claims get through the system. But the 8.15 crore formal sector employees with PF accounts should be worried, especially if they have switched multiple jobs in recent years but failed to withdraw or transfer the PF balances, or if an ex-employer has shut down in recent years.

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