(KALB) - Officials with Louisiana State Police, the Rapides Parish Sheriff’s Office and the Natchitoches Police Department are alerting residents of recent text and phone scams

State police said many residents are getting text messages claiming they have an “outstanding traffic ticket” and must pay a fee.

The Louisiana OMV offers the following tips to help residents avoid scams:

DO NOT click on links in an unsolicited message from an unverified source

DO NOT respond or send your personal information via text

Delete all suspicious texts and emails and report them to reportfraud.ftc.gov

Exercise caution with all communications you receive from anonymous sources

Confirm the message was generated from a legitimate source

Keep an eye out for signs of scams (rewards, vague URLs, incorr

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