How to check if a loan was taken in your name using PAN or Aadhaar

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• Check your credit report for fraudulent loans or suspicious inquiries promptly.
• Report unauthorized loans to the lender, file a cybercrime complaint, and dispute it.
• Mask PAN/Aadhaar and share documents only with trusted, regulated institutions.

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Most people don’t find out about PAN or Aadhaar misuse in a dramatic way. It’s usually something small and unsettling: an SMS about an EMI you don’t recognise, a missed call from a recovery agent, or a loan rejection that makes no sense because you’ve “always paid on time.” The problem is that once a fraudulent loan sits on your record for even a few months, it can start pulling your credit score down and triggering more friction across banks.

The good part is that you can check this quickly, and you can respond in a way that makes it harder for the system to treat you like the borrower.

The fastest check: Look at your credit report, not your inbox

If a formal loan has been taken in your name, it almost always shows up on your credit report because lenders report to credit bureaus using your PAN. This is the quickest way to confirm whether the problem is real, and it also gives you the exact lender name, account number and dates you’ll need for complaints.

When you pull the report, focus on three things. First, look for a loan or credit line you don’t recognise. Second, look at the “enquiries” section, because even if the loan hasn’t been approved, the application attempts often show up as recent enquiries. Third, check your personal details in the report, because fraud often leaves fingerprints there, such as a new phone number, a new email ID, or a strange address added to your profile.

If the report is clean, it usually means there is no regulated loan in your name right now. It does not necessarily mean your details are safe, but it does mean you are not yet dealing with an active reported loan.

Why this happens more often than people think

This is rarely about someone stealing your physical PAN card. Most of the time it happens because our documents are shared too freely and stored too casually. People upload PAN and Aadhaar to unknown loan apps, send unmasked copies to brokers, share screenshots for “KYC,” or forward documents on WhatsApp without thinking. Once that data leaks, it can be stitched together with a different mobile number and email ID, and a small digital loan can be taken quickly.

A lot of fraud starts with small-ticket loans, because they are easier to push through and easier to disappear after.

If you find a loan you didn’t take, do these three things first

Your instinct will be to call customer care and argue. Call if you must, but the real work is done in writing, because written complaints become evidence.

First, email the lender’s official grievance channel and clearly say that the loan was not taken by you and is a case of identity fraud. Ask them to mark the account as “disputed due to identity theft,” stop recovery action while it is investigated, and share the KYC documents and the disbursal trail they relied on. Keep it crisp, and attach a screenshot or PDF page of the credit report entry showing the loan.

Second, file a cybercrime complaint. You can do it online or at a local police station, but you need an acknowledgement number. Many lenders and bureaus simply will not move meaningfully without a police or cybercrime complaint reference, because it converts your dispute from “customer says it’s not mine” to an official fraud allegation.

Third, raise a dispute with the credit bureau where the loan appears. Attach the lender email and the police/cybercrime acknowledgement. Ask for the account to be flagged as fraudulent and for your report to carry a remark that the entry is under dispute due to identity theft. This matters because while the investigation runs, you don’t want the account treated as a normal delinquency.

If recovery calls start, don’t panic, but don’t ignore them

Recovery teams often start calling because the system sees a missed EMI and automatically triggers collection. The important thing is to keep the conversation boring and factual. Tell them you are not the borrower, you have disputed the loan as identity fraud, and you have filed a complaint. Then follow up by email so there is a written record.

If you only speak on calls, the problem can drift. If you create an email trail, it becomes much harder for the lender to pretend you never raised the issue.

How to protect yourself while it is being sorted out

Fraud investigations can take time, and your goal is to contain damage while the system catches up.

Keep monitoring your credit report for new enquiries or accounts for the next few months, because sometimes the same data leak is used multiple times. If your bureau offers alerts, turn them on. Also check whether your profile details have been changed, because correcting a wrong phone number or address can stop future surprises.

What to do so this doesn’t repeat

Going forward, get strict about how you share documents. Mask your PAN and Aadhaar when you send copies, show only what is necessary, and avoid sending clean, full-page images unless you are dealing with a regulated institution you trust. If someone insists on “just send the photo,” treat it as a red flag, not a normal request.

Also get into the habit of checking your credit report periodically. It feels unnecessary until the day it isn’t.