By Omoyeni Ojeifo
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has warned motorists against fraudulent text messages notifying them of alleged “new road traffic offence records” and directing them to a fake website.
The messages, circulated through mobile devices and social media platforms, create a sense of urgency by asking recipients to click links to review purported traffic offence details.
The Corps specifically disowned the website “frscgov.top/ng”, stressing that it has no affiliation with FRSC or its digital services.
“The Corps Marshal, Shehu Mohammed, has directed that the public be adequately sensitised to the fraudulent scheme, urging motorists to exercise vigilance in their online engagements,” the Corps Public Education Officer, Osondu Ohaeri, said in a statement emailed to PerSecondNews on Wednesday.
According to the FRSC, the fraudulent links may be intended to harvest personal information, financial details or other sensitive data from unsuspecting victims.
The Corps advised members of the public not to disclose banking information, passwords, card details, driver’s licence information, vehicle registration details or other personal data in response to unsolicited messages.
“The official FRSC website is www.frsc.gov.ng, while motorists can also use the national toll-free line 122 to verify information,” it noted.
The Corps urged members of the public who receive the messages to preserve the evidence, avoid further engagement with the sender and report the matter through appropriate channels.
“Motorists are advised to verify any alleged traffic offence directly through official FRSC channels rather than through links contained in unsolicited messages.”
The Corps Marshal stressed that any message claiming to be from the Corps should first be verified through the official FRSC website and established communication channels.
He warned individuals and criminal elements behind the scheme against using the identity, name, insignia, digital platforms and institutional credibility of FRSC for criminal exploitation.
“The Corps will collaborate with relevant law-enforcement and cybersecurity authorities to pursue appropriate action against those responsible.”
The FRSC urged Nigerians to “STOP. VERIFY. REPORT” and share the alert widely to prevent unsuspecting motorists from falling victim to the scam.
Meanwhile, PersecondNews correspondent spoke to some commercial drivers about the fake messages and fraudulent alerts who claimed they had not received such.
The duo of Nazir Kabir and Emmanuel Ologe confirmed that they are yet to receive such messages.
They described the alert as timely, saying greater awareness could help motorists avoid falling victim to fraudulent messages.
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