Cybersecurity Advisory for Linden Residents – SMS Text Scams

Over the last week, hundreds of domains were registered to impersonate 20 states and establish toll scam websites. The domains aimed at NJ residents include URLs similar to “nj.gov**[.]help/mvc.”

The webpages use stolen branding and mimic the official Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) website’s look and feel. The webpage displays “Welcome to NJMVC.GOV,” but the actual URL ends with a .help top-level domain. We are aware that there are already incident reports of SMS phishing scams that include links to these websites. We anticipate a surge in scam texts targeting NJ residents.

These texts may claim there is an unpaid toll, threaten late fees, and direct recipients to fraudulent webpages.

• The NJ MVC only sends text messages to remind residents about scheduled MVC appointments.
• The NJ MVC does not send texts regarding outstanding toll payments.
• You can always check your toll service’s account by manually typing the official website URL into the browser, and not by clicking on a link provided in an email or text message.

Always remember the following.

• Avoid clicking links, responding to, or acting on unsolicited text messages.
• Confirm requests from senders via contact information obtained from verified and official sources.
• Report fraudulent activity to the Linden Police Department, to the NJCCIC, FTC, and FBI’s IC3, and forward the message to 7726 (SPAM).