The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) continues its efforts to protect consumers from scammers who are posing as Wisconsin DMV and demanding payment or requesting personal information. The newly published webpage, wisconsindmv.gov/scams, is a frontline resource to help consumers recognize scams, learn how to protect themselves and provide guidance on what to do if they are caught up in a phishing scam attempt.

“Waves of fake emails and texts that look like they’re from the Wisconsin DMV are circulating across the state,” Wisconsin DMV Administrator Tommy Winkler said. “These ongoing scams are easy to recognize if you know what to look for. Our new webpage educates folks on red flags, provides resources to protect themselves and gives advice on what to do if they think they’ve fallen victim.”

Common tell-tale features from recent phishing attacks include:

• Demands for money
• Requires urgent action
• Embeds malicious links
• Requests personal information
• Identifies as Department of Motor Vehicles, instead of Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s official Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV)

The new DMV webpage also posts images of recent scams that have hit Wisconsin. Transportation departments from across the country are reporting similar scams.

Consumers can take these steps to protect themselves:

• Sign up for DMV’s eNotify service (gov/enotify) to receive transaction alerts which can help identify any suspicious or fraudulent charges or changes to the account.
• Begin online DMV service at gov. Nearly all DMV services can be initiated by the customer online, including renewals, obtaining title and license plates and scheduling a visit. 
• Examine the URL and sender of the message. If the URL does not end in (.gov), it is not a message from Wisconsin DMV.
• Wisconsin DMV will never demand payment via text.

Consumers can also follow WisDOT social media to learn about scams that may be spreading in the state.

Submitted by Wisconsin DMV