Quincy Reporter

Senator Jil Tracy is warning her constituents of a scam involving individuals pretending to be from the Illinois Tollway. She stated, "the Illinois Tollway is advising I-PASS customers to disregard phishing texts being sent to their phones from 'Illinois toll way' that detail a specific outstanding toll amount." Tracy made the announcement in a July 11 Facebook post.

"SCAM ALERT," said Tracy, State Senator 50th District (R), according to Facebook. "The Illinois Tollway is advising I-PASS customers to disregard phishing texts being sent to their phones from “Illinois toll way” that detail a specific outstanding toll amount. If you receive a text and are unsure, please check your account onlineor call our customer service center at 1-800-UC-IPASS (1-800-824-7277) from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays. I-PASS customers should delete any text that you receive stating an outstanding toll amount."

According to Tracy's Facebook post, "The Tollway has been informed that this is a phishing scam claiming that recipients owe money for unpaid tolls. If you receive a phishing text, please file a complaint at https://www.ic3.gov/, a site dedicated to sharing information on Internet crimes across law enforcement agencies."

Screenshot of Sen. Jil Tracy's July 11 Facebook post | Senator JIl Tracy's Facebook page.

NewsChannel20 reported on the scam on July 9, stating that the Illinois State Police are warning the public of the phone scam. The text message reads, "Illinois Toll way, our records indicate that your vehicle has an unpaid toll invoice. To avoid additional charges of $75.90, please settle your balance of $7.59 at https://illinoistollwayservices.com."

If someone receives the text, the Illinois State Police suggest several tips and things to pay attention to:
- Do not respond to a text message or send money to a number you do not know.
- The area code in the scammers' text message is 263 for Montreal, Canada, not Illinois.
- The spelling used in the scammer’s text is incorrect. Illinois Tollway is not spelled "Illinois Toll way." The link in the text message is also incorrect.

The Illinois Tollway has been informed of the current scam and advises I-PASS customers to disregard phishing texts from "Illinois toll way." They say that individuals who receive such texts can check their accounts online or call the customer service center from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday. The Illinois Tollway also advises customers to "delete any text that you receive stating an outstanding toll amount."

Senator Tracy has represented the people of the 50th Senate District since January 2023. Prior to joining the Senate, she served as a State Representative from 2006 through 2014, according to her official biography. She worked as Mt. Sterling City Attorney and as a private lawyer before working as an Assistant Illinois Attorney General under Attorneys General Jim Ryan and Lisa Madigan. She and her husband live in Quincy.