The E-Z Pass transponder system is available to drivers in fourteen states and enables the drivers to avoid stopping to pay tolls when driving on toll roads.  Instead they merely drive through a special lane where their transponder is electronically read.  The tolls are then charged to a credit card on file with E-Z Pass.  It is a very efficient system that works well.  It also works well for scammers who recently have been sending phishing emails to residents of New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and even Canada where they system is also used.  The emails appear official looking.  It carries the logo of E-Z Pass.  The message is short.  It reads: “Dear customer, You have not paid for driving on a toll road. This invoice is sent repeatedly, please service your debt in the shortest possible time.”  The stilted language is a good indication that this scam may have originated in a country where English is not the primary language.  The email goes on to indicate “The invoice can be downloaded here” and it provides a link for you to supposedly access your bill.  DON’T CLICK ON THE LINK.  In some versions of the scam, if you click on the link, you will be prompted to provide information that can be used to make you a victim of identity theft.  In other versions of the scam, merely clicking on the link will download malware on to your computer that will steal all of your personal information from your computer and use it to make you a victim of identity theft.

TIPS

Never click on links or download attachments in emails or text messages regardless of how official they may appear.  You can never be sure as to whether it is legitimate or not.  Your best course of action is, if you have any inclination that it may be legitimate, to contact the real company or agency and inquire as to the legitimacy of the contact.  In this particular case, E-Z Pass does not communicate regarding bills by emails so you can be confident if you do get such an email it is a scam.  As always, you should also make sure that your anti-malware and anti-virus software is kept up to date, but don’t rely on that to keep you safe because the best anti-malware and anti-virus programs are always at least thirty days behind the latest malware and viruses.