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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A text message claiming to be from the city of Charlotte’s parking services is urging people to pay “unpaid parking invoices.”
Several Charlotte residents told WCNC Charlotte they received the alert and wondered if it was a scam or a legitimate request.
Is the following text message from the city of Charlotte’s “Park It” program?
The city of Charlotte
No, the text message is not from the city and is likely an SMS phishing attempt.
A city spokesperson confirmed that the text message is not from parking services, which never uses texts to notify residents of parking citations. Instead, parking tickets are placed on windshields, and late notices are sent in the mail via USPS.
“The text messages related to unpaid parking citations are not legitimate and are not from the City of Charlotte or the Park It program,” the city spokesperson said. “These messages are part of a scam, and we advise residents to avoid clicking on any links, entering any website address, or sharing personal information.”
The scam message could be convincing at first glance, however, it contains several red flags. The photo contains a typo where “35$” is written and it creates a sense of urgency by saying the payment is needed immediately. Also, it asks the person to type a web URL into their browser.
If the city of Charlotte cites someone with a parking violation, they can pay it through the city’s online portal.
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