Out-of-state toll scam targeting Kansas

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) – For months, FactFinder has been warning about scammers pretending to be the Kansas Turnpike Authority and asking you to pay late tolls. Now some Kansans are the targets of another toll scam, this time miles away in another part of the country.

Melinda Cairns is among those targeted by the Florida-based scam. He said the first message he received raised red flags.

“I realized I had a standing toll and that was because I hadn’t been on any toll roads,” Cairns said.

Cairns said that in the message he received, he was told that he owed $19.42 in toll fees. But what really caught his attention was that the message did not appear to have been sent from the Kansas Turnpike. Instead, it appeared to be from SunPass Paid Services in Florida, which Cairns said he had not visited in decades.

“Probably since 1970,” he said.

The texts did not end there. Even after Cairns blocked the first point. This happened two more times, causing him to think twice about the places he had traveled to recently.

“I had to think it through and I said, ‘I didn’t go through the toll gate,'” he said.

A simple search online shows Cairns isn’t the only person receiving messages claiming to be from SunPass Toll Services. In May, Florida’s attorney general shut down 10 scam websites pretending to be SunPass. But months later, scammers continue to send scam links.

The Better Business Bureau said sending toll-related texts is one tactic scammers use to try to get you to click on their links.

“This is a whack-a-mole exercise. We publish an investigation, that site gets taken down, which is great, but then that site miraculously appears under a different name,” explained Josh Planos of the Better Business Bureau.

The BBB calls this tactic a “killing scheme,” where scammers use urgent language to not only get you to send money but also to give you access to your personal information.

“In some cases, it’s establishing you as a warm account, a device that’s willing to engage, and someone who’s willing to give them the time of day,” Planos said.

But Cairns wants to go about his day without worrying about accidentally clicking on a scam link.

“Scammers are terrible and if you click on them you may find yourself in a money mess,” he said.

What should you do if you’re receiving messages from scammers claiming you have unpaid tolls? Block the number and file a report with the FBI Internet Crimes Complaint Center. If you receive multiple messages like the one scammers sent to Cairns, continue reporting them.

If you accidentally clicked on one of the fraudulent links, check your credit bureau report and credit card statements and make sure you check multiple times.