Toll text scam ramps up, continuing to target Kansas drivers
TOPEKA, Kan. (KCTV) - A scam targeting drivers continues to light up phones.
Scammers are sending text messages claiming you owe an unpaid toll fee.
If you click the link, you could be handing over your personal and financial information to criminals.
Whether you’ve traveled through a toll booth recently drivers are still receiving texts that they owe a bill.
The Kansas Turnpike Authority warned drivers about this scheme back in September, but tech experts said scammers are getting smarter with the messages they’re sending.
If you’ve received one, or multiple, you’re not alone. This text scam is spreading across Kansas and beyond. For some multiple texts are sent about about a state they never went to.
“You almost have to have that mentality of trust no one or anything that comes into your text message or your inbox,” said Burton Kelso, a local technology expert.
Kelso said the scams started to pop-up back in July, when Kansas toll booths went digital.
The text keeps coming because people keep clicking on the link.
“They launch in small areas to see if those attacks are successful and once they find out there’s a high success rate, they look to other areas where they can carry out the same schemes and get more money from people,” he explained.
The scam tries to intimidate people with threats including threatening legal action, losing your driver’s license and late fees or penalties.
Kelso said the link is just a gateway to get to your personal and financial information.
“It’s only $10, it’s only $6.99, but that’s not the gist of what criminals are trying to do,” he said, “what they’re trying to do is to get a little bit of information from you in order to eventually steal your identity, or if they have your credit card information, then they can take that information and make larger purchases.”
These days, Kelso said knowledge is power when up against scams.
“Find out, number one, how am I going to get my receipt, especially with Kansas toll, and number two, what are my options of getting a receipt,” he said.
According to the KTA, they don’t send unsolicited texts or emails. The only way you’d get a text from them is if you signed up for the service and then you’d with credentials you created when you signed up.
The KTA urges anyone who gets texts like this to report it a www.ic3.gov.
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