E-mail scam claims to be from DOL director

The DOL has plans to roll out a new driver license design this summer aimed at preventing fraud and is studying ways to safeguard personal information and prevent identity theft.

At least one person in Alabama received an email claiming to be from the Washington Department of Licensing Director Liz Luce asking for money and personal information in order to claim a prize. The agency is warning Washington residents to be on the lookout.

“DOL will never contact you by e-mail or phone and ask for personal information,” Luce said. “This is certainly one of those cases where if it sounds too good to be true, it most likely is.”

A similar thing going around attributes its source to the FBI, the CIA, and even military personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan.

DOL alerted Washington State Patrol about the e-mail, as well as its own internal investigation division.

The message contained a rambling letter and three official state forms as attachments.

Another scam was discovered in Pasco recently involving actual bank checks being sent out using a Pasco business account with a stamped signature of another state official.

“As those who carry these crimes out are getting more sophisticated, so is the Department of Licensing, but citizens must be watchful as well,” Luce said.