Friday, November 21, 2008

Skimming Devices Thwarted by Using PIN Debit


I've posted quite a few times on gas station skimming.  (See related articles at the end of this post)

In fact, just yesterday, (previous post) I posted about an Illinois Credit Union that revoked "pay at the pump" privileges for it's card holders entirely

They even took the exorbitantly tell-tale steps of temporarily "barring" signature debit, use entirely...requiring their card holders to exclusively use PIN debit.  (for what I mean about "tell-tale" see:
Bank Temporarily Bans Signature Debit, Mandates PIN to Reduce Threat!)

For those unfamiliar with the gas pump skimming technique, here's an overview:  A criminal can break into the gas pump, attach a tiny device to the computer that reads credit card information, fix the pump and walk away without any visible sign of the skimmer in inside

 “There’s an electronic skimming device inside the computer part (of the pump) and it passively collects data.”
The thief would then return to the pump at a later date, break back into it, remove the device, and then usually sell all the personal information to a third party, he added. Criminals will use the information online or to make counterfeit credit cards.
Trailing the stolen information is difficult, especially since victims usually don’t immediately realize their information has been stolen.
“If they go and use the card in elsewhere, say NY, Chicago, L.A. or somewhere or outside the county, it's almost impossible to catch them.  It is also nearly impossible for local agencies to track all the information.
The best way to protect against gas station skimmers, is by paying with cash, or go inside the gas station to use your card and use a debit card with a PIN number.
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