Beware of fake calls or messages to pay traffic fines, Dubai Police warn

Dubai: Dubai Police have once again reminded residents to beware of fraudulent activities from scammers impersonating as government officials.

Police warned residents of a new scam that has emerged recently tricking residents into ‘paying fines’ while the callers pretend to be Dubai Police employees.

According to Dubai Police, several Dubai residents have reported receiving either an email or SMS asking them to pay traffic fines immediately, followed by a link for payment.

In an awareness message posted on its official social media channels, Dubai Police said: “Dubai Police have identified multiple fraud cases in which scammers pretended to be from the police department. If you are being asked to make payments via links and share your personal information, stop, verify the sender’s email again, and report it to Dubai Police e-Crime cell, our social media channels, or call 901.”

How do I know that a message is fake?

It can be difficult to avoid responding to a message if you think it is coming from a government agency. In order to educate users on how they can identify whether a message claiming to be from a government authority is in fact fake, residents can spot some signs that a message may be of fraudulent nature.

Resident must notice these signs:

A message asking you to pay immediately

Poor grammar

Misspelt words

A link for payment

An unknown number or ID that does not display the name of the authority