Office of the
Illinois Attorney General
Kwame Raoul

Chicago – Attorney General Kwame Raoul today urged Illinois consumers to be alert for scam text messages claiming they committed a traffic or tollway violation and must pay a fine. Raoul’s office is warning that the unsolicited text messages are intended to trick consumers into sharing personal and financial information. 

“Illinois residents should be assured that government agencies will not call, text or email unprompted to ask for payment or personal information,” Raoul said. “If you receive such a message, even if the phone number appears to be local, do not respond. If you are unsure if the request is legitimate, contact the agency through the information provided on its official website.” 

The Attorney General’s office cautions residents against assuming a text is legitimate because it is sent from a familiar phone number, area code or contains a letter that may look official. Raoul explained scammers use caller ID to spoof phone numbers to make it appear as though the text is from a reliable source in an effort to convince recipients to provide personal information, click links that will install malware on devices, or click on a web link to a spoofed website. If recipients attempt to enter usernames and passwords to access these fake websites, scammers may have the ability to access or steal personal information.

Raoul also encouraged consumers to consider the following tips to help protect themselves from scammers: 

• Do not share your personal information: Only share Social Security numbers, bank routing and account numbers or other personally identifiable financial information to organizations you know well and that have a legitimate need for the information. Never share the information over text message or in the body of an email.
• Do not share your phone number on the internet: It allows parties to sell information to those who might want to send text scams, which makes your information susceptible to data leaks.
• Do not act immediately: Smishing scams attempt to create a false sense of urgency by implying that an immediate response is required, or that there is a limited time to respond. Take time to verify the sender’s identity, and ask yourself why the sender is asking for your information. 
• Never open a link or an attachment from unsolicited, suspicious or unexpected text or email messages: Scammers can use a variety of tactics to hack email or social media accounts once a link is clicked or an attachment is opened. Do not click on or submit payment through QR codes included in unsolicited messages because it can download malware onto the device.
• Do not respond to suspicious text messages, even to say “STOP.” Replying to a smishing message verifies a phone number is active and willing to open such messages, which may lead to more unsolicited text messages.
• Monitor credit transactions: Consumers who may have replied in the past to smishing texts or clicked links within texts or emails are encouraged sign up for free bank or credit card transaction alerts. If unrecognized activity occurs, consumers can place a fraud alert with a credit reporting agency, or place a freeze on their credit report.
• Monitor I-PASS and tollway accounts: Illinois drivers can check to find out if they have unpaid tolls via www.IllinoisTollway.com or by calling 1-800-824-7277.

Attorney General Raoul encourages consumers who think they have been the victim of identity theft or other fraud to file a complaint on the Attorney General’s website or with the Federal Bureau of Investigations’ (FBI) Internet Crime Complaint Center. People can review the identity theft resources on Raoul’s website and call Raoul’s toll-free Identity Theft Hotline at 866-999-5630. 

Consumers can also call one of the Attorney General’s Consumer Fraud Hotlines: 

1-800-386-5438 (Chicago)
1-800-243-0618 (Springfield) 
1-800-243-0607 (Carbondale)
1-866-310-8398 (Spanish-language hotline) 

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