The Rome Police Department wants you to know something: that scary text message saying you owe money on a traffic ticket is a scam. And yes, people are falling for it.
What’s Happening: According to the police department, the texts claim you missed a ticket or a court date, threaten arrest or jail time, and include a link demanding immediate payment — which is, to be clear, not how any of this works.
What’s Important: Real traffic citations are issued in person or through official court mail. Courts do not collect fines by text message. Law enforcement does not threaten arrest over a text. If your phone is buzzing with urgent legal threats and a payment link, that is a scammer, not a cop.
How This Affects Real People: Anyone who clicks the link or sends money could hand cash directly to a fraudster with no way to get it back.
The Path Forward: Rome police say to delete the message, skip the link, and keep your wallet closed. If you genuinely cannot tell whether a citation is real call your local court directly using a phone number you looked up yourself, not one conveniently provided in the suspicious text.
From The Book
“My dad always said of people who acted like this, ‘If he had a brain, he’d be dangerous,’ but the truth is, stupidity is far more dangerous than intelligence will ever be.”
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
