Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias warned residents about a new type of phishing scam in a recent X post, saying text messages posing as the Department of Motor Vehicles should be ignored.

Here's what we know.

What do the scam texts look like?

The text messages are targeting Illinois vehicle owners and telling them they have outstanding traffic tickets that need to be paid immediately, according to Giannoulias' X post. The texts may also threaten the recipient with the “suspension of driving privileges.”

What should you do if you receive phishing texts?

Giannoulias says in his post that you should avoid responding to or clicking any links within the messages. You can report the fraudulent texts to the Federal Trade Commission at reportfraud.ftc.gov .

The texts are part of a phishing scheme designed to trick the recipient into giving personal or financial information, which could potentially lead to identity theft or fraud.

Does the Illinois DMV send text messages?

The DMV never sends text messages regarding vehicle registrations or driver's licenses. The department only sends text message reminders about scheduled DMV appointments.

What is phishing? What is smishing?

Phishing is pronounced like the word "fishing" and is defined by Illinois Tollyway as "the practice of sending fraudulent email messages that are disguised as legitimate and often include company logos that look real." They are designed to steal money and often start with an official-looking message appearing to be from a trusted source, such as a credit card company or reputable online merchant.

Recipients are directed in the messages to a fraudulent website or asked to open an attachment that may contain potential email viruses. The information obtained is then usually used for identity theft.

Phishing is typically done either via phone call or email.

Smishing is essentially SMS phishing , where the method of trying to steal information is through text messages.