Full Notification

Recently NJ residents have been receiving SMS text phishing scams impersonating the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).  The messages claim the recipient has an outstanding traffic ticket and payment is due. If not paid, they will have their vehicle registration and driving privileges suspended, receive a toll booth charge increase, and their credit score will be impacted.  The URL in the message includes "ezpassnj" and ".gov" in an attempt to appear legitimate.  The message itself does not allow the recipient to click the included link directly, but instead instructs them to reply to the message with a "Y" and re-open the message to click the link or copy the URL to their browser.  These links lead to fraudulent websites that attempt to extract personally identifiable information, financial details, or account credentials.

The NJ MVC only sends text messages to remind residents about scheduled MVC appointments.  It does not send text messages regarding driver's licenses or vehicle registration status. 

NJ E-Z Pass does not send unsolicited text messages to collect payments.  If your account is in collections, you may receive text messages from Credit Collection Services regarding your account.  Their text will list a phone number, their website (www.ccspayment.com), and reference a file number.

Recommendations
-Avoid clicking links, responding to, or otherwise acting on unsolicited text messages
-Visit official websites directly to determine if there is an issue with an account or outstanding bill
-Avoid submitting sensitive information to unverified websites

Recipients of phishing messages should report the incident at www.cyber.nj.gov/report