The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has issued a warning to consumers about a Real ID scam. Similar to the Good to Go scam (Toll Road scam) fraudsters pretend to be from a state DMV or in the case of Washington State from the Department of Licensing (DOL) in an unexpected text message, email, or phone call to tell you that you can skip the lines and expedite your application for a Real ID. All you have to do is click the link, give some information and you will get your Real ID. Observers have also seen ads on social media claiming to help you expedite your application for a Real ID for a fee.
The problem is that there (unfortunately) is no way out of going
to a DOL office to apply for or renew a driver’s license. If you receive an
email, text, or phone call telling you that you can get your Real ID driver’s
license in any other way, that is a scam!
While there have not been any reports of this scam in the local
press or by Washington State, other states have seen the scam and national organizations
such as the FTC, AARP, and the Better Business Bureau have been warning
consumers to watch out for it since before the May 7 deadline that mandated
Real ID as being required to board domestic flights and certain federal
facilities.
The fact that the FTC has issued this warning after the deadline
indicates that the scam is still going around nationwide. Where the urgency
before May 7 might have been to receive a Real ID driver’s license before the
deadline the scammers now could play on a sense of urgency if you need to take
a domestic flight in the near future and do not have a Real ID compliant driver’s
license or any of a number of acceptable ID’s such as a passport, U.S. Military
ID, Permanent Resident Card (Green Card), Border Crossing Card, etc. As with most
scams, the Real ID scam plays on urgency to get you emotional and to act
without thinking.
Remember, the Department of Licensing will not contact you via
email, text, or a phone call. And they do not want to be paid with crypto
currency or gift cards. If you need to apply for or renew your driver’s license,
go directly to the Department of Licensing web site to find out how to make
your application.
Federal Trade Commission;
https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2025/06/yes-going-dmv-only-way-avoid-real-id-scam
WBTS NBC10 News, Boston:
https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/nbc10-boston-about-us/2834500/
AARP:
https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/avoid-real-id-scams/?msockid=1ccaa3490741631714d9b3fb03416160
Better Business Bureau:
Washington State Department of Transportation:
https://dol.wa.gov/driver-licenses-and-permits/renew-or-replace-driver-license
https://dol.wa.gov/id-cards/real-id
South Snohomish County Crime Watch:
https://ssnoccrimewatch.blogspot.com/2024/07/scams-good-to-go-scam.html
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