Westchester Insider: Westchester County Legislator MaryJane Shimsky 12th District: NYS DMV Warns Against Phishing Scams.

 

NYS DMV Warns Against Phishing Scams.

The New York State Department of Motor Vehicles has seen an increase in online and phone "phishing" scams involving scammers pretending to be the DMV in an attempt to commit identity theft.

These "phishing" attempts often include logos, images and content copied from the legitimate New York State DMV website (or another New York State government site) to make their fraudulent communication appear realistic. Phishing can be in the form of phone solicitations, fraudulent social media accounts or websites.

Phishing attacks are one of the most common online scams. The best way to protect yourself from an attack is to be aware and vigilant.

To that end, the NYS DMV has created a web page at https://dmv.ny.gov/more-info/phishing-examples with examples of emails and text messages asking recipients to update their personal information for expiring government documents.

The examples are NOT from the New York State DMV.  The Department advises:

• Do not click on any links
• Do not provide any personal information

If you feel that you have been contacted in an attempt to obtain your personal information, please let the Department know. A description of the event or, if possible, a screen shot can be emailed to dmv.sm.phishingattacks@dmv.ny.gov.