PSA: That Parking Fine SMS You Received Is Likely a Phishing Scam
1 min read
Summary
Cities across the US, including Boston, Detroit, Charlotte and San Francisco, have warned their residents of a phishing scam via text message.
The message recipients are allegedly sent a parking fine, with threats of a $35 daily increase if it goes unpaid.
The texts include a URL link to what appears to be a legitimate payment portal, which asks for money and bank details; however, the link is to a scam webpage.
To avoid this scam, recipients should check the sender’s phone number and be aware of whether they’ve visited the city in question; if the answer to both is no, do not click on the link.
Instead, recipients can forward the scam text to 7726, which will report the spam text and help protect others.
