NewsCompaniesFlawsGuides
Get the app

E-ZPass and toll scam texts: you don’t owe that toll

From Scams, in the HARD wiki · Updated

A text that says you owe a small unpaid toll and will be charged a late fee unless you pay through a link is a scam, whichever toll agency it names.

The FBI started warning about these texts in April 2024, and E-ZPass has said the toll account details in them are not valid. The wording is almost identical from state to state; only the agency name and the link change.

These texts name US toll agencies. Drivers elsewhere get the same text in the names of local toll roads and congestion charges; check on the operator’s own site.

What it looks like

An example written by HARD, not a real message. Real ones change wording often.

Text from +44 7700 900461

E-ZPass Toll Services: We’ve noticed an outstanding toll of $6.99 on your account. To avoid a late fee of $50.00, pay today: [a link that isn’t your toll agency’s site]

Check the one you got

Paste what you were sent. HARD checks it in this browser with the same rules as the Is this legit? check in its apps. Nothing you paste leaves this page.

How to tell it’s fake

“FasTrak does not request payment by text with a link to a website.”

California Attorney General, on FasTrak
A small amount and a big late fee.
A few dollars owed and a much larger penalty if you don’t pay today. The FBI’s alert quotes exactly this shape.
The link only looks like the toll agency.
It uses the agency’s name with extra words, such as “toll services”, on an address the agency doesn’t own.
It isn’t your agency, or you weren’t there.
A text about a toll road in a state you haven’t driven in is the giveaway. The same senders cycle through every state.
It came from a number you don’t know.
The FBI found the sending numbers change from state to state while the wording stays the same.

If you clicked, called or paid

Call your bank if you paid or typed in card details.
Use the number on the back of your card, not one from the message. Ask them to block the card, dispute the charge and watch for more. The sooner you call, the better the chance of stopping it.
Tell the toll agency if you gave account details.
E-ZPass’s warning says to contact your bank and E-ZPass if you entered your details on the scam page.
Watch for identity theft.
The FTC says clicking can expose your driver’s licence number as well. If you gave it, or a Social Security number, freeze your credit.
Report it.
To the FBI at ic3.gov, including the number the text came from and the website it named. Also ReportFraud.ftc.gov, and forward the text to 7726. Then delete it.

If it was your parents, read Look after your parents, and if a card number or password has gone, Breaches explains what each kind of leaked data lets criminals do.

The official way to check

Sign in to your toll account yourself.
Type your agency’s address or open its app: E-ZPass in your state, SunPass, FasTrak, The Toll Roads or others. Any real balance shows there.
Call the number on the agency’s site or your statement.
Not one from the text.

Someone on the phone asking for money right now? Guides has the two-step answer. More scams by name are on Is this a scam?, and new ones reach the Situation Room.

Questions

Is the E-ZPass text about an unpaid toll real?

Almost certainly not. E-ZPass has said the toll account details in these texts are neither valid nor accurate. Check your balance by signing in to your E-ZPass account yourself.

What if I paid the toll text?

Call your bank on the number on your card to block it and dispute the charge, tell your toll agency if you gave account details, and report it at ic3.gov and ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

Why did I get a toll text for a state I’ve never driven in?

Because the senders text huge lists of numbers in every state’s name. It isn’t about you; delete it.

Sources

Sources checked on 7 Nov 2026.

  1. FBI IC3: Smishing scam regarding debt for road toll services (I-041224-PSA), 12 April 2024: the message pattern, checking on the toll service’s own site, reporting the number and website to IC3.
  2. Maryland DOT: E-ZPass issues warning to customers on smishing scam, 30 April 2024: E-ZPass says the toll details in these texts are not valid; contact your bank and E-ZPass if you entered details.
  3. California Attorney General: alert on toll and delivery text scams, 6 March 2025: FasTrak doesn’t request payment by text with a link; check your account at the agency’s own site.
  4. FTC: Got a text about unpaid tolls? It’s probably a scam, 17 January 2025: scammers pose as toll agencies nationwide; clicking can expose your driver’s licence number; report and delete.