Department of Transportation reminds the public: Don’t fall for scams

The Hawai‘i Department of Transportation is reminding people not to click on links in unsolicited text messages. Several scam text messages have been making the rounds claiming to be from the Hawai‘i Department of Transportation, or the “Department of Motor Vehicles” regarding unpaid traffic violations and subsequent holds on driver’s licensing.

HDOT reminds the public that citations for traffic violations will never be sent via text message. Citations for red-light running violations and speed violations through the safety camera systems are sent through the mail. A sample citation can be viewed here. If your citation doesn’t match, or requests payment through a website that is not https://etraffic.ehawaii.gov or https://www.violationinfo.com/, it is a scam.

If you have clicked on the link in a scam text or entered financial information, HDOT recommends the following:

• Close the page and delete it immediately.
• Scan your device (i.e., whatever you opened the link on) for malware and ensure your antivirus and security tools are up to date.
• If you entered any information on the site, change your passwords and enable multifactor authentication.
• Monitor your bank and credit accounts.
• Report the scam at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov.