New York Residents Are Getting Tricked With This Scam

It’s something that every New York resident with a driver’s license could fall for, and the scary part is that most people are. 

Many New Yorkers have been receiving texts from an unfamiliar phone number, making a convincing case that they are contacting them as an official member of New York state, but it’s not what you think. 

Ever since New York has moved to the Tolls By Mail initiative, there have been several drivers that have received suspicious text messages from someone posing to be a member of the New York State Thruway Authority. Although the Tolls By Mail may save time and reduce pollution by eliminating the need to stop and wait in line to pay cash tolls, it actually has put residents at high risk of being scammed by people who use the toll road – especially the older generations. 

One person in Lancaster shared a weird text they received on Tuesday about an outstanding toll bill. From the phone number 1-647-627-8524, this was the text received:

“New York Tolls Services, our records show that your vehicle has an outstanding toll charge. To prevent further fees totaling $96.70, please settle the due amount of $9.67 at https://tollsbymailnyinvoice.-com “

A few ways you can identify that the text is a scam is by checking for a few things:

• Does the official Tolls by Mail New York website match the link provided? (No, the actual site is https://www.tollsbymailny.com/vector/videotolls/invoices/invoiceInquiry.do)
• Does your plate number actually come up with any tolls when you search by your plate? (If not, it’s probably a scam.) 
• Does the text number have an answering system or a voicemail feature? (If the answer is no, it’s most likely a scam.) 

Other people have received text messages threatening to charge a fee of the same amount of $96.70, so if you receive a similar text message, double check to make sure it’s not legitimate before putting in your card information.