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๐Ÿ‡น๐Ÿ‡ท Turkey /Crime & Justice

Drivers beware: Fake traffic-fine scam spreads, stealing data with threats to suspend licenses

From Sabah · () Turkish

Translated from Turkish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • Scammers are sending emails that impersonate an official Turkish authority and claim recipients have unpaid traffic fines overdue by more than three months.
  • The messages threaten indefinite license suspension unless a supposed fine is paid within 24 hours, then redirect users to fake payment pages designed to collect card and personal information.
  • Cyber-forensics expert Ali Murat Kฤฑrฤฑk said the scam exploits panic and urged users to verify fines through official channels rather than trust formal-looking messages.

A new phishing scam is targeting Turkish drivers with fake traffic-fine notices and threats that their licenses will be suspended indefinitely. The emails imitate an official institution, refer to a supposed "Department of Traffic Violations" and claim that recipients have fines unpaid for more than three months.

The messages pressure people to pay within 24 hours. To appear authentic, they use fabricated reference numbers such as "TC-2026-081" and specific amounts, including 2,200 Turkish lira. Recipients are encouraged to click buttons labeled to pay the fine before the deadline.

Those links can lead to counterfeit payment pages designed to resemble official government websites. Users may be asked for their card number, expiration date, CVV code and other personal information. People who believe they are paying a traffic fine could instead hand their financial details directly to scammers.

Cyber-forensics expert Prof. Dr. Ali Murat Kฤฑrฤฑk said the method is a classic phishing attack built around the traffic-fine theme. "The aim is to make citizens act in panic," he said. Kฤฑrฤฑk added that official terminology, reference numbers and stated fine amounts do not prove a message is genuine. Users should focus on the channel through which a transaction is being requested.

The aim is to make citizens act in panic.

· Ali Murat KฤฑrฤฑkThe cyber-forensics expert explained how scammers try to shorten victims' decision-making time.
About this summary

Originally published by Sabah in Turkish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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