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Linkt toll scam: Aussies can win car, $50 gift card by reporting

Aussies lost more than $660,000 to road-toll scams last year.

Tamika Seeto
·Finance Reporter
Updated ·2-min read
Cars driving through road toll tunnel. Linkt road toll scam text message.
Aussies are being urged to report road toll scams. (Source: Getty/Linkt)

Have you received a pesky Linkt scam message? Well, if you report it, you could win a free car or $50.

Transurban is urging Aussies to report any toll-road text scams, and is offering rewards for doing so, after Aussies lost more than $660,000 to the scams last year.

About 57 per cent of Aussies who received the Linkt scam text message deleted it, Transurban found, while just 9 per cent of people reported it to Linkt.

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“These kinds of scams can catch out the best of us – often when we’re in a rush or under pressure,” Transurban group executive customer and technology Simon Moorfield said.

“We know from our own customer research many are deleting messages but, by taking the extra step to report the scam to us online, you can help prevent future scams from affecting our community.”

By reporting the scams to Linkt, you can go into the running to win an electric Hyundai IONIQ 5 Dynamiq car or a $50 Mastercard gift card (150 up for grabs).

Entries are open until Sunday, June 4, but Linkt said you could continue reporting the SMS scams after that. You can enter the competition with each new SMS scam text you receive.

Aussies lose $664,000

Aussies reported more than 14,500 road-toll scams to the ACCC’s Scamwatch last year, with total losses reaching $664,000.

The scam text messages often claim you have an unpaid road toll and request immediate payment. While some text messages come from unknown numbers, others are sent using a spoofing technique that makes the message appear to be sent from Linkt.

Linkt said some red flags to look out for included:

  • Incorrect spelling and grammar

  • Strange links that don’t look like legitimate websites

  • Requests that may be vague or unspecific

  • Use of urgent language or threats/consequences if you don’t take immediate action

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