LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Agencies in Indiana are warning of a scam flooding inboxes with fake messages about unpaid tolls using official state email addresses. 

Many people, including many in the WDRB newsroom, found dozens of fake emails in their inboxes Tuesday morning. Some people also received fraudulent  text messages.

The emails had subject lines of "TxTag Account Suspension Warning," and the email body warned, "You have unpaid toll fees totaling $6.69. Failure to pay may result in penalties or vehicle registration holds." The emails include a link to "pay now." 

Agencies including the Indiana Department of Homeland Security posted a message early Tuesday warning people not to click on links in the emails. 

"If you received messages from IDHS or another state agency about unpaid tolls, please disregard them. We apologize for any confusion this may have caused," read a post on X by IDHS.

The Indiana Office of Technology said in an X post that, "These messages are scams, and users should not click on any of the links. The State does not send unpaid toll notifications via text or email messages" 

The IOT post said it has identified the company used to send the messages and is working to stop additional messages from being sent. 

"The State of Indiana contract with this company ended on 12/31/2024, but they did not remove the State's account A contractor's account was hacked and use to send those messages," IOT said. The post said the Office of Technology it "is not aware of current state systems being compromised." 

The hacked agencies that sent the fraudulent emails included the Indiana Governor's Office, Indiana Horse Racing Commission, Indiana Department of Transportation, Indiana Department of Child Services, Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council, Indiana Department of Workforce Development and Family and Social Services Administration. 

In a news release, INDOT said "If you have received a text message related to unpaid or past due tolls from INDOT or another state agency, delete the message and report it to the Federal Trade Commission and/or Internet Crime Complaint Center."

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