Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency is urging people to be on the lookout for widely distributed 'phishing scam' e-mails which direct recipients to a counterfeit website to renew their vehicle licence.

While the phishing emails have been circulating for more than a year, Waka Kotahi says scammers are likely to try to capitalise on the upcoming holiday break to catch people off-guard during the business of Christmas and New Year.

These phishing emails are not from Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency. They are part of an ongoing phishing scam which leads people to a counterfeit website.

Waka Kotahi says if you receive one of these messages you should delete it immediately.​

"Since Waka Kotahi first issued warnings about a similar phishing scam in late 2019, several new versions of the original phishing e-mail have appeared."

They are working with Police, CERT NZ and Netsafe to combat the scammers, but they are persistent, and no sooner is one phony website taken down than another appears.

"A phishing scam is an email, call or text from someone pretending to be us. They'll try to get your personal information (like your driver licence number or credit card details). They may trick you into paying for something that seems legitimate, like your vehicle licence."

How to spot a phishing scam

• We'll only send you an email if you've contacted us first, or you've signed up to receive email notifications and reminders from us.
• Genuine emails from us come from @nzta.govt.nz or @reply.nzta.govt.nz
• Scam email addresses will look similar, but won't be correct (scam examples include nzta.co.nz, nzta.gov.nz, nzta.qovt.nz, nzta.nz, nzta.com).
• The email, phone call or text may be threatening.
• It might be missing specific details that you'd expect us to know. For example, when we email you to say your vehicle licence (rego) is due, we include your specific details like your plate number, vehicle make and rego expiry date. Scammers don't know that specific information, so can't include it.
• It might include buttons or links that are malicious and will take you to a fake website. Hover your mouse over buttons or links (but don't click on them) to see if they'll take you to a genuine government (govt) website.