As text scams continue to flood phones across the country, a trio of states are warning the public about the fraudulent attempts to collect tolls.
This past week, state Departments of Transportation in Idaho, Iowa and Wisconsin issued warnings about phishing scams occurring in their respective states.
“We’re hearing from our DMV counterparts that Illinois, Pennsylvania, Florida, New Jersey, Georgia and New York were hit with this scam last week. Given the number of calls we’re getting from DMV customers, it’s likely Wisconsin is the next target,” DMV Bureau of Driver Services Director Tina Braddy said in a statement. “We want to protect our residents, so we are quickly issuing this alert to ensure fewer fall victim to these scams.”
As with scams in most other states, these scam texts are seeking payment for unpaid tolls – or more recently, for unpaid traffic violations – and threaten legal action if the fines or tolls are not urgently paid. In most instances, the fraudulent correspondence is designed to appear to be from a state agency.
In the case of Iowa, the request for unpaid tolls is particularly questionable, considering the state doesn’t have tolled roads. This obvious red flag has also been seen in Missouri and Oregon – with scammers now using unspecified “traffic violations” instead to try to solicit sensitive data.
“Scammers are becoming more sophisticated and using fear tactics to get people to click on fake links or provide personal information,” said Idaho DMV Administrator Lisa McClellan.
If you receive a text regarding unpaid tolls or traffic violations, state agencies are urging you to:
- Be suspicious of demands for money and urgency.
- Do not share personal information via unsolicited emails or messages.
- Do not respond or engage with the caller or click on links.
In a recent Facebook post, the North Carolina DOT shared an example of a scam text, along with some of the tale-tale signs of scams.
If you receive a text, do not click on the link and block the sender. If you receive a phone call, hang up and block the caller. You can also report scam texts, calls or emails to the Federal Trade Commission as well as the Internet Crime Complaint Center. LL
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