Fake toll road unpaid fee phishing — non-government sender impersonates E-ZPass, SunPass, FasTrak, Illinois Tollway, or other US toll operators claiming a small unpaid toll balance will trigger late fees, vehicle registration holds, or DMV license plate flags unless paid immediately via a fraudulent portal

Phishing emails impersonating E-ZPass, SunPass, FasTrak, Illinois Tollway, TxTag, and other US toll operators claiming the recipient has a small unpaid or overdue toll balance (typically $3–$15) that will incur escalating late fees, vehicle registration holds, or DMV license plate flags unless paid immediately via a linked fraudulent payment portal designed to harvest credit card details. The FTC and FBI issued joint advisories in 2024 documenting a 300% year-over-year spike in toll impersonation phishing — one of the fastest-growing consumer fraud vectors. Key facts: (1) Real toll operators send statements on a monthly billing cycle through official domains and never threaten registration suspension within 24–48 hours of a first notice; (2) The fraudulent sites typically request full credit card number, expiration, CVV, and billing address — far more than a toll payment portal requires; (3) These campaigns heavily exploit SMS ("smishing") but email variants are also common; (4) E-ZPass, SunPass, and FasTrak all explicitly state on their websites that they do not send unsolicited payment-demand emails with external payment links. Warning signs: unexpected toll email, threat of registration hold or DMV flag, urgency to "pay before midnight," link to a non-.gov, non-official domain.