Investigation Found 103 Card Skimmers In Florida Gas Stations

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(u2acro)

If you’re still using your debit card and PIN at self-pay gas pumps, here’s a reminder of why that isn’t such a good idea. Florida’s Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services sent inspectors out to look for card skimmers in gas pumps all over the state. They found more than 103 of the devices.

That’s only about 1.5% of the 7,571 pumps that they checked, sure, but it’s 103 more electronic devices than law enforcement, consumers, and gas station owners want stealing the card numbers and often the PINs of their customers.

As a consumer, you can avoid having a skimmer scammer drain your bank account by using a credit card or processing your debit card as a credit card at the pump, and by checking the pump itself to see whether any security seals have been broken or removed. This isn’t a foolproof method, since some gas stations still struggle with the concept, but it does help.

If you live in or have traveled to Florida recently, you can check out the full list of pumps where skimmers were found during this investigation.

State finds 103 credit-card skimmers in 3-month inspection of gas pumps [Orlando Sentinel]

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist