Tue, Jan 17th 2023 04:20 pm
Submitted by the Better Business Bureau of Upstate New York
Watch out for this new twist on an old scam. Scammers are using new technology to create fake parking tickets that look surprisingly official. It could be a scam if you receive a parking ticket and are confident that you parked legally.
“This one actually happened to me when I was on vacation this past summer in Philadelphia,” said Matt Krueger, communications director for Better Business Bureau of Upstate New York. “I parked in the ramp attached to the hotel where we were staying and found a ticket on my windshield. After checking with hotel staff, we discovered it was fake.”
How the Scam Works
You park in a legal parking zone or pay to park on the street or in a garage. While you are away from your car, scammers use high-tech, hand-held printers to make a fake ticket and leave it on your car’s windshield.
This phony citation usually asks you to pay online or via PayPal. One recent case used a QR code to direct victims to a fake payment website. If you follow the instructions, you’ll end up paying a fine you don’t owe. Also, your personal information will now be in the hands of scammers.
One parker reported the following experience to BBB: “I paid $15 to park in a garage and received a receipt for it, which I displayed on my dashboard. However, I then received a violation notice for $56 for the parking receipt not being visible on the dashboard.”
In other versions of…
