Sheriff: New DMV Scam Now Impacting Hudson Valley

A new scam appears to be circulating the Hudson Valley, the latest in a long list of seemingly innocent messages that are anything but...

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Dutchess County Sheriff's Office Warms of DMV Scam

In a written message, the Dutchess County Sheriff's Office has issued a warning for the latest scam making its way around the area, this one involving the DMV.

According to Sheriff Kirk Imperati's Office, the perpetrators this time around are posing as the DMV, and contacting victims via text or email. The messages claim that the victim has 'unpaid tolls, and that if the tolls aren't paid by the next day their vehicle's registration will be suspended.'

The message itself isn't the biggest problem, either, there is a link connected to the message that directs the person to a fraudulent DMV website. An image shared by the Sheriff's Department of the fraudulent website can be found below.

READ MORE: 'Professional Scammer' Caught in Hudson Valley

Sheriff's Tips to Protect Yourself From Scams

There are several steps to take in order to protect yourself from this, and other scams, with some of the most important one things to remember outlined below:

• an easy way to detect a scam is by being contacted by someone you don't know asking for money
• similarly, if someone you do not know reaches out and asks you to keep their correspondence confidential, this is likely a scam as well
• be on the lookout for grammatical errors or misspelled words, and 'off-hour' messages
• be mindful of email messages for orders you did not place, and never click on links in those messages, likewise, if someone you do not know asks you to purchase something for them or transfer money/grant access to banking - this is likely a scam

Additional tips to protect yourself and others from falling victim to scams can be accessed here.

The Sheriff's Office reinforces the importance of NEVER sending money to anyone that you don't know. Unless you've 'confirmed the situation through an independent source' and feel confident/comfortable that the request is legitimate, it is likely a scam. It is also important to remember that it is nearly impossible to recover funds that were lost during a scam transaction.