More states are cautioning residents to be wary of text message scams claiming to come from DMVs.
The texts scams pose as messages from state Departments of Motor Vehicles, or DMVs. As of Friday, June 6, Colorado, Indiana, Minnesota, California, Michigan and North Carolina have warned residents about the scam. llinois, Pennsylvania, Florida, New Jersey, Georgia and New York previously issued advisories.
The new DMV scams come hot on the tail of a string of text scams that threatened folks with unpaid toll charges. Here’s what to know about the latest scam and how to report, if you receive one.
While the texts vary state to state, the underlying message is the same: Residents are at risk of losing their vehicle registration and driving privileges, receive a toll booth charge increase, or see their credit score impacted, if they go not pay an outstanding traffic ticket to the state’s DMV.
The text message sent in Indiana includes a date penalties will begin, a fake administrative code and a list of consequences that the receiver will face if they don’t pay an outstanding bill. The message also includes a link that appears to be the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles website.
If you receive a text message from a DMV, demanding money, the Federal Trade Commission suggests the following:
The DMV text scam is an example of smishing.
“Smishing” is a social engineering attack that uses fake text messages to trick people into downloading malware, sharing sensitive information or sending money to hackers, according to IBM. The term is a combination of “SMS” or short messaging service” and “phishing,” an umbrella term for social engineering attacks.
Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Story idea? Email her at [email protected].

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