Is that unpaid toll text a scam? (E-ZPass, SunPass, FasTrak)
Fake toll road texts are one of the highest-volume smishing attacks in circulation in 2024 and 2025. You receive a text claiming to be from E-ZPass, SunPass, FasTrak, The Toll Roads, or your state's toll authority, stating that you have an unpaid toll balance — typically $3 to $15 — and must pay immediately to avoid a larger penalty fee.
The link goes to a convincingly designed fake website that closely mimics the real toll authority's payment portal. Entering your credit card details there delivers them directly to the scammer. In some variants, the page also harvests your name, address, and driver's licence number.
A key tell: these texts are sent in bulk to millions of phone numbers regardless of whether the recipient has driven on a toll road. Many people who receive these texts don't even own a car.
🚩 Red flags to watch for
- ▶An unsolicited text about an unpaid toll balance you don't recognise.
- ▶The link in the text is not the official domain of your state's toll authority — real domains end in .gov or a known authority's domain (e.g. ezpassny.com, sunpass.com).
- ▶The text creates urgency: 'Pay within 24 hours or face a $35 penalty.'
- ▶The message came from a regular mobile number, not an official shortcode.
- ▶You received the message even though you haven't used a toll road recently.
✅ What to do
- 1Do not click the link in the text.
- 2If you have a toll transponder account, log in directly via the official website (type the URL yourself or use the official app) and check your balance there.
- 3Forward the text to 7726 (SPAM) — this alerts your carrier to the scam number.
- 4Report to the FBI's IC3 (ic3.gov), which tracks these campaigns, and to your toll authority's official fraud contact.
- 5Block and delete the message.
📣 Where to report (by country)
🇺🇸 United States
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- Action Fraud
- Police Scotland — call 101
🇦🇺 Australia
🇨🇦 Canada
🌍 Everywhere else
- Contact your local police and your bank immediately
- If money was sent, ask your bank about a recall request — act within hours
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Common questions
I don't have a toll pass. Why did I get this text?
These texts are sent to millions of phone numbers at random — the scammers don't know whether you have a toll account. The small percentage of people who do have accounts (and have forgotten about a balance) are the target. If you don't have a toll account, the message is definitively fake.
I clicked the link but didn't enter my card details. Am I safe?
Likely yes, as long as you didn't enter any information. Simply opening a link in a modern, updated browser rarely causes harm. To be safe, avoid using the same device to log in to banking apps for a few hours, and run a security check if you're concerned.