Tuesday, April 29, 2025

April 13, 2016

Did You Get An SMS About Traffic Fines You Owe? Don’t Panic – It Might Be Fake

SMS scams are so frequent - but when they come from the "SAPS" one might jump to unfortunate conclusions.
Text message received on a mobile phone
When one receives an SMS, undoubtedly 80% of the time it is a scam. Okay, I made that percentage up, but SMS’s are so rare these days that one has to wonder at their legitimacy.
The latest scam involves the SAPS – how’s that? Users receive a text message claiming a case has been opened up against them by police. According to spokesperson Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi, the first case was reported in January. Since then, however, there had been an increasing number of instances nationwide:

The scam came to the SAPS’s attention after a case had been reported in Rosebank, Gauteng in January. It was followed by other cases with the same modus operandi that was reported in the Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, the Free State, North West, and Limpopo.

How Does It Work:

The victims received a SMS stating a SAPS case had been opened against them and that they had to contact a Constable Baloyi at 060 800 8148. Other random names and different contact numbers were also given in other instances.

After they responded to the message, they would be informed that a warrant of arrest had been issued for a traffic fine and that they needed to pay a certain amount. An account number would be given claiming they had to deposit the money into an FNB account with the number 62017066201 or an Absa account number, 4054021171.

Got it? Cool. It is requested that if you do receive an SMS of this kind, kindly contact your nearest police station. Aweh.

[source: news24]