‘This is your LAST WARNING’: Tollway texting you about unpaid fees? Don’t believe it
The Illinois tollway is alerting I-PASS customers of a phishing scam using texts with dire but fake warnings intended to trick people into divulging personal information.
“Toll text scams are occurring nationwide. The Illinois tollway is advising customers to disregard these phishing texts. These messages are not associated with the Illinois tollway or our customer data,” agency leaders said Friday.
Numerous I-PASS users received fake messages with ominous warnings such as “this is your FINAL official notice from I-PASS, operated by the Illinois Tollway, regarding an unpaid toll associated with your vehicle.
“You must pay the outstanding balance by April 25, 2025 using the secure link below. Failure to pay by this deadline may result in serious consequences,” the phony text read.
Authorities noted the urgent tone and the demand to click on a link should be your first clue the message is fraudulent.
The tollway “will never use email to request that you reply with your password, Social Security number or confidential personal information,” officials said.
Also, “scammers attempt to create a false sense of urgency by implying an immediate response is required or that there is a limited time to respond,” according to the Illinois attorney general’s office.
If you receive a text or email you’re unsure about, try to confirm the identity of the sender. In the case of the tollway text, one sender’s ID started with “mugaianot8777not,” obviously not a government source.
The tollway also recommended that affected customers with concerns check their online accounts or call customer service at (800) UC-IPASS, or (800) 824-7277 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays.
Phishing texts can be reported to the Federal Trade Commission’s Reportfraud.ftc.gov website or the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov.
Here’s some other tips from the Illinois attorney general’s office.
• Never give out your Social Security number, or bank account and routing information unless you know to whom you’re providing it and why. Be wary of pop-up ads or free trial offers that request your phone number.
• State and federal agencies typically don’t call, email or text to ask for personal information or money. If it looks suspicious, check with the official agency.
• Don’t believe messages that insist you must act immediately. Take time to verify the source.
• Never open a link or attachment in an unexpected text or email from an unknown, unsolicited source. Bad actors could load malware onto your devices.
• Don’t respond to suspicious text messages. Replying “verifies a phone number is active and willing to open such messages, which may lead to more unsolicited text messages,” officials said.