The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is warning Kentuckians about fraudulent text messages that impersonate state agencies. Officials warn that these messages feature a suspicious link similar to those found on legitimate Kentucky government websites.
The scam messages warn customers of unpaid traffic tickets and say that a "DMV violation" will be reported and "driving privileges" will be suspended if payment is not sent immediately.
During a press conference, Governor Beshear said some of these scam messages can be very convincing.
“Do not click on any of these texts, don't click on any of the links, even if you see KY or gov in the links, they are fraudulent. The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet does not collect traffic ticket fees or notify customers of violations.”
Governor Beshear said there is an easy way to identify these scam messages.
“Be on alert for texts with odd misspellings or references to the DMV or DOT, which are not the official names we use for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet or our driver licensing regional offices.”
The Governor said efforts are being made to have the fraudulent websites taken down.
Anyone who may have received one of these scam messages can visit the Kentucky Office of the Attorney General website to follow their guidance concerning potential identity theft.
They can also forward the suspicious message to 7726 (SPAM) to alert your mobile provider as well.
