DMV Warns New Yorkers About Latest Barrage of Scam Texts

Phishing Expeditions Seek to Trick Customers into Handing Over Personal Information

Texts Falsely Claim New Yorkers Owe for Tickets and Need to Pay Immediately

The New York State Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) is warning customers to be aware of the latest efforts to scam them into sharing personal information. The culprits design websites and phishing text messages to look legitimate, hoping some of the recipients will be fooled into providing information that can be used to commit identity theft and fraud.

Some of the scam messages claim to be from DMV and that a driver’s license is about to be suspended. An extremely short window of time is then given for payment.

“These text messages tend to come in waves. They will stop for a while only to start up again,” said DMV Commissioner Mark J.F. Schroeder. “You should know that DMV will never send a text like this, threatening you to make payments within days or risk suspension. That should be a glaring red flag that the message you are receiving is not actually coming from us.”

There are several giveaways that the texts are a fraud. They include email addresses that are not official DMV accounts and often contain individual names and strings of numbers or are from Outlook,Gmail, Yahoo or other nongovernmental email systems. They link to seemingly official websites that are not the real DMV website. The official DMV website is dmv.ny.gov.

If you did share your personal information, you should check your credit reports regularly. You can contact any of the three credit reporting agencies (TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian) to place a credit freeze or fraud alert on your account.

You should also change your passwords, check your computer or devices for viruses, and notify your bank and other companies that you have accounts with.

Phishing texts and imitation websites are designed to obtain data or sensitive personal information to be used to commit identity theft or trick the recipient into installing malicious software onto a computer or mobile device.

DMV created a page on its website on these phishing attacks. Another page on the website is regularly updated with examples of the text messages.

The New York State Department of Information Technology Services offers advice on avoiding these phishing attacks.

Be cautious about all communications you receive, including those that claim to be from "trusted entities." Be careful when clicking any links contained within those messages. If in doubt, do not click.

Do not send your personal information via email. Legitimate businesses will not ask users to send sensitive personal information through email.

Keep an eye out for telltale signs: poor spelling or grammar, the use of threats, or the URL does not match that of the legitimate site.

Be wary of how much information you post online. The less information you post, the less data you make available to a cybercriminal for use in developing a potential attack or scam.

For more information about DMV, visit the DMV website, or follow the DMV conversation online at Facebook, X, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Sources: https://dmv.ny.gov/news/dmv-warns-new-yorkers-about-latest-barrage-of-scam-texts