Fraudsters impersonate traffic police in SMS, demanding fine payment
Slovakia is being targeted by a fraudulent SMS campaign in which criminals send false messages claiming to be from the traffic police. Recipients are threatened with fines for alleged speeding violations and urged to pay immediately.
Fraudsters impersonate traffic police in SMS, demanding fine payment
Slovakia is being hit by another wave of false text messages. The perpetrators pose as traffic police and claim that the recipient exceeded the maximum permitted speed. As a solution, they demand payment of a fine within 24 hours to avoid further penalties.
The Police of the Slovak Republic warns that this is a fraud. Traffic inspectorate officers never send fines via mobile messages and do not request payment through SMS links. Any alleged traffic violations are dealt with exclusively in accordance with the Road Traffic Act, usually directly on the spot or by written notice.
The fraudulent messages contain a link that, when clicked, takes the user to an external website. There, the attackers typically ask for payment details or other sensitive information. In this way, victims can lose not only money but also personal data that can be misused in further criminal activity.
Similar campaigns have appeared repeatedly on the territory of the republic. Perpetrators regularly change the wording of messages, sender telephone numbers and target internet addresses. The aim is to bypass the security filters of mobile operators and keep the fraud active for as long as possible.
Security analysts recommend automatically deleting all suspicious SMS messages. It is important not to click on any links in the message, not to reply to it and not to provide any information through it. If a user accidentally clicks on the fraudulent link and enters information, they should immediately contact their bank and potentially block access to their account.
Source: Žilinský večerník
Source: Google News SK — Crime (sk)