An Instagram* post by 'bingewealth' claims that the Income-tax Department (ITD) tracks people’s personal digital activity, online spending, or lifestyle.

#PIBFactCheck

❌ This claim is #misleading! Here’s the real picture:

✅ The Income-tax Department does NOT track online shopping, digital payments, app-based transactions, or any form of personal spending behaviour. There is no mechanism to monitor an individual’s digital or online activity.

✅ Reporting under Section 285BA of the Income Tax Act, 1961 does not involve surveillance. The Statement of Financial Transactions (SFT) framework requires specified entities (banks, registrars, etc.) to report limited high-value transactions as part of routine compliance. These provisions have existed for years and do not involve behavioural profiling or online activity monitoring.