Local and state agencies said Tennesseans are being targeted by new scams seeking money for bogus traffic fines.
The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security and the Tennessee Highway Patrol are warning residents of recent text messages saying they could lose their driving privileges if they don’t pay.
Some of the messages include a link to a fake website that looks similar to the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security.
“This new outstanding traffic ticket scam is similar to the recent unpaid toll scam and other messages pretending to be from trusted sources that have been making the rounds across the country,” the department said in a release sent via email.
A spokesperson with Clarksville Police said local residents were receiving text messages from people claiming to be from the “Tennessee Department of Vehicles” who were seeking payment.
But the state agency is called the Tennessee Department of Motor Vehicles.
“This deliberate misnaming is the first red flag indicating the message is not from a trusted source,” Clarksville police spokesperson Scott Beaubien said in a statement sent via email.
Beaubien said the text messages are coming from unofficial email addresses, not valid government addresses.
Residents who receive the fake messages should not respond to the text messages, avoid clicking links and do not send personal or financial information, authorities warned.
If someone did provide information, submit a report to the Federal Trade Commission at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov.
The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security is assuring the public that the scam messages are not being sent by their agency. They do not send text messages about overdue traffic fines or license suspensions, they said.
Reach reporter Craig Shoup by email at cshoup@gannett.com and on X @Craig_Shoup. To support his work, sign up for a digital subscription to www.tennessean.com.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Scam Alert: Tennessee traffic ticket texts are bogus, officials warn