SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — A 5 On Your Side photojournalist got a suspicious text message on his phone, so he brought it to the Verify team to find out whether it was real.
The message read: "From the Secretary of State, Jesse White, you are required to update your drivers license." The text included a link to a website that uses the Illinois Secretary of State seal, the name of the real Secretary of State's website, and official-looking forms.
THE QUESTION
Are text messages claiming to help with driver's license renewal really from the Secretary of State's office?
THE SOURCE
We went directly to the Illinois Secretary of State's office to find out the truth. Beth Kaufman, the office's deputy press secretary, answered the Verify team's questions.
THE ANSWER
Don't be fooled. Text messages with links that claim to be from the Illinois Secretary of State's office are fake, as are the websites that they direct to.
WHAT WE FOUND
Texts, websites, and emails that claim to be from the Illinois Secretary of State's office about driver's license renewals are all fake, said Beth Kaufman, the deputy press secretary for the Illinois Secretary of State.
She adds that her office's IT team has helped shut down 40 such imposter websites, but they keep popping up.
While the sites are a likely phishing attempt, set up to trick Illinoisans into sending personal information to an unknown cybercriminal, Kaufman said she doesn't know why it's happening.
The Verify team can confirm: the text and the website are fake.
Kaufman said that any text, website, or phone call claiming to be from the Illinois Secretary of State is fake. The office never communicates that way, she said.
She adds that the resident is the one who initiates contact with the office by either going to a motor vehicle licensing office in person or going to the official website.
If you receive one of these texts or emails, don't click on the links. You can safely delete them. Kaufman recommends that anyone who clicked on the link and provided personal information reach out to the Illinois Attorney General's office. The number for the consumer fraud hotline at the Attorney General's office in Carbondale is 1-800-243-0607.