AMHERST, N.Y. — The Amherst Police Department is telling residents to be wary of text messages from the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, as a phishing scam continues to go around.
Police say these fraudulent text messages look like they're being sent from the Department of Motor Vehicles, and they include a link to a fake website. The text tells the recipient to update their contact information, in an attempt to gain access to sensitive personal information.
Anyone who receives a text like the one posted in the Amherst Police tweet below is being told not to provide any personal information and to immediately delete the text.
The NYS Office of Information Technology Services (ITS) recommends following these precautions to protect yourself from phishing scams:
- Exercise caution with all communications you receive, including those that appear to be from a trusted entity.
- Inspect the sender’s information to confirm the message was generated from a legitimate source.
- Look for telltale signs of phishing, such as poor spelling or grammar, the use of threats, or the URL does not match that of the legitimate website. If the message does not feel right, chances are it is not.
- Don't click on links embedded in an unsolicited message from an unverified source.
- Don't send your personal information via text. Legitimate businesses will not ask users to send sensitive personal information through text message.
- Don't post sensitive information online.
For more information on phishing scams click here.