The Alaska Department of Transportation is warning Alaskans to be on “high alert” amid a surge in scam text messages falsely claiming that the recipients owe money for unpaid tolls or parking tickets.
“These scams are designed to trick individuals into clicking malicious links or providing sensitive personal and financial information,”stated the DOT announcement issued on Thursday .
The DOT announcement referenced scam texts about unpaid tolls, noting that Alaska only has one toll facility at the Whittier Tunnel, and that the state never sends toll messages by text. In addition, DOT does not issue parking citations, and does not collect fines via text.
Several individuals in the Ketchikan area on Thursday received scam texts purporting to be from the Alaska Department of Motor Vehicles.
One example of the DMV scam text read: “ALASKA Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Final Notices: Enforcement Penalties Begin on June 20. Our records show that as of today, you have an outstanding traffic ticket.” The scam text then references a fake section of “Alaska Administrative Code.”
The DOT announcement stated that “red flags” indicative of scam texts include claims of urgent unpaid tolls or fines, requests for immediate payment on digital payment apps or unfamiliar links, misspelled agency names, vague details or suspicious looking URLs.
Individuals receiving a scam text should not click to any link in the message, or reply to the message or provide any personal information.
Scam texts can be reported to the Federal Trade Commission by email at reportfraud.ftc.gov, or to the Alaska Office of the Attorney General – Consumer Protection Unit at law.alaska.gov/consumer.
“Scammers are constantly adapting their tactics,” stated the announcement from DOT, which “encourages Alaskans to remain skeptical of any unsolicited text messages involving money, especially those appearing to come from government agencies.”