SCAM ALERT: Motorists targeted with Cloned Traffic-Fine Texts a Day After TraffiTech-GH Launch

The issue was flagged up on Monday morning after a vigilant driver posted to social media site X. The post included a screen shot of a text they received at 11.28am from an 11-digit mobile number. The text included: "Official Traffic Message: You have a traffic violation. View Details Here" along with a shortened link wanting to get personal and banking information from individuals.

The X post included the Ghana Police Service handle and said "They scammers are already here". The police quickly responded, saying legitimate traffic tickets are never sent from personal phone numbers. If the message doesn’t include an identification from the sender it is a scam according to the official guidance for the new system.

The Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) said there was some confusion around the link when the system first launched on Sunday. However, it has been confirmed that legitimate messages will not have any unsafe shortened links. Motorists will need to enter their personal ticket number into the official portal (traffitech-ghpay.nib.com.gh).

To help the public differentiate between official messages, the police have listed all the information included within a official ticket. Legitimate state tickets will include a personal ticket number, vehicle registration number, what law was broken, where the incident occurred, the date and time, fine amount and a deadline for payment.

All legitimate electronic payments will be made using automated systems. Motorists can pay their fine online using the Ghana.gov portal. This can be done using credit/debit cards or mobile money. Citizens can also pay using the official TraffiTech-GH payment portal on their mobile phone by texting 7100#.

"Never pay your TraffiTech-GH fine to a personal number or account." The public are being urged to be cautious and report any suspicious messages. If motorists receive any suspicious messages they can contact investigators by calling 191 or 18555.

It has been discovered these fake penalty messages were circulating in the local tech community weeks before the system was launched. On the 9th October, Rollins Orlu, a Security Analyst at IT Company Darrel Technologies received a phishing text from a standard mobile number. The message said his vehicle had been caught on a mobile speed camera and included a malicious link.

Orlu investigated further and found the link was taking users to a professional fake DVLA site. It asked users to pay a GH¢120 fine immediately however, if you paid within 48 hours you would receive 50% off (GH¢60). Users would then be asked to enter their credit card details. This led to an official statement from DVLA on the 21st October. They confirmed they don’t offer any discounts or deadline dates.

This isn’t the first time the automated traffic systems have fallen victim to cyber fraudsters. Earlier this year the Police Intelligence Directorate issued a warning about a fake electronic traffic violation notice. An intelligence led operation meant 7 people were arrested. This shows the police will do everything they can to find anyone attempting to bring the public’s trust down.