HB2551<\/a> would ban state agencies from using text messages to collect unpaid fines, fees, tolls or other charges. The ban would also apply to the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.<\/p>\n\u201cOver the last few years, Pennsylvanians have been inundated with fraudulent text messages from bad actors masquerading as Commonwealth agencies,\u201d Isaacson said. \u201cThese fraudulent text messages warn of imaginary unpaid fees, fines and tolls.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said the toll text and other scams are working far too often.<\/p>\n
Some people have been tricked into handing over credit card numbers, bank details, Social Security numbers and other private information.<\/p>\n
Residents have long been told state agencies will never demand payment through a text. But that clear warning could soon lose its power.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf state agencies were to begin sending texts about financial matters, they would be blurring the lines between legitimate sources and bad actors pretending to be an agency,\u201d Isaacson said.<\/p>\n
She warned that government payment texts could make it harder to spot scams. The change could also give criminals an easier way to fool more people.<\/p>\n
Closing the loopholes<\/p>\n
The committee-approved version of the bill included exceptions. People could choose to receive messages from state agencies. Agencies also could send free information about government services.<\/p>\n
Exceptions for toll texts and more were removed on the House floor.<\/p>\n
Rep. Brenda Pugh, R-Dallas, said the change gives consumers stronger and clearer protection.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy amendment removed the exceptions from the bill, ensuring the prohibition is applied consistently,\u201d Pugh said. \u201cPennsylvanians should not have to wonder whether a text that is demanding payment is legitimate or not.\u201d<\/p>\n
HB2551 now moves to the Senate Communications and Technology Committee. LL<\/p>\n
More Land Line coverage of Pennsylvania<\/a> news is available.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Pennsylvania lawmakers are taking aim at scam texts that prey on people\u2019s fear. The rule would apply to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":255659,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[28,30,29],"class_list":["post-255658","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania-headlines","tag-pennsylvania-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255658","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=255658"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255658\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/255659"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=255658"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=255658"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=255658"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}