Officials warn about ongoing FasTrak scam as new versions continuously pop up

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- There's a warning to local drivers about an ongoing scam involving FasTrak.

All around the Bay Area, people have been getting texts warning them they owe money for an overdue toll.

Some of the messages even saying drivers could face penalties like a suspension of their vehicle registration or legal proceedings if they don't pay up.

"Neither we with the Fastrak operation here in the Bay Area, nor any other legitimate toll operator is going to seek to collect payment from customers by sending a text message with a link to a website," said John Goodwin.

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Goodwin is a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission- the organization that runs Fastrak.

Goodwin says this scam has been ongoing for about a year. He says over that time period, it's evolved continuously to try and trick more people.

"This is the second iteration of messages that we've received this calendar year that we've been made aware of," Goodwin said.

On the streets of San Francisco, we met Donald Gable, who told ABC7 News both he and his wife have been getting the scam texts for months.

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"Actually, I just got one this morning," Gable said.

Gable showed it to us, saying he can see why some people would fall for the scam.

"It's pretty precise and clear, concise... and it just says why it's being sent and what you need to do to ratify the problem," he said.

Fellow San Francisco resident Jeremy Fortes says he too has gotten the messages. While Fortes knows not to fall for them, he says he worries that older friends or family members might get confused.

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"When I see them, I always know like, wow, I bet you this is working for a lot of people," Fortes said.

FasTrak officials say they're actively working to try and get the scam shut down.

"We have employed a domain shut down service to try and stamp these out, but it's a bit of a whack-a-mole game," said Goodwin.

Goodwin says if you've fallen victim, he recommends calling your bank immediately to try and stop the transaction from going through.