Have you ever wondered how people get their identities stolen so easily these days? Credit card skimmers are partly to thank. Skimmers can pop up anywhere, but if you shop at Walmart, keep a close eye out. Thousands of Walmart customers have had their credit card information stolen thanks to criminals with credit card skimmers.
What Are Credit Card Skimmers?
Credit card skimmers are small electronic devices that criminals can place on top of a credit card reader at a grocery store, gas station and pretty much anywhere else. When you swipe your credit card to make a purchase, the skimmer steals your information from the magnetic strip on your card. If this sounds too easy, it is. Credit card skimmers are very small and extremely hard to see, especially for someone who isn’t looking for one.
Credit Card Skimmers At Walmart
Two Walmart locations were hit not too long ago by criminals planting these devices, and there could be more. The first credit card skimmer was found on May 11 at a location in Fort Wright, Kentucky. The criminals responsible have no yet been identified. It’s possible that they could even be employees of the store, who loaded the device onto the self-checkout machine to scam unsuspecting customers.
It took the store about a week to find the device. During that week, thousands of people had their credit card information stolen. Fort Wright police chief Dan Kreinest said, “To go inside a store like Walmart that has a lot of surveillance equipment and install a skimmer is pretty bold.”
After watching hours of security video, police believe they found video of the two suspects who installed the device. They released the images to the public in hopes of someone coming forward to identify them. Kreinest explained, “These folks did not part at the Walmart. They actually parked off-site, so we’re pretty certain that’s who we’re looking for.”
Credit Card Skimmers Strike Again
A Walmart store in Fredericksburg, Virginia had a similar device installed on their checkout machines. The store reported the skimming device was spotted after almost 40 customers noticed large ATM withdrawls were made from their accounts without their knowledge. Police asked everyone who shopped at the store to have their bank reissue their cards.
Walmart’s Senior Manager of Communications, Erica Jones, released a statement about the skimmer incidents. “First and foremost, we have zero tolerance for any crime against our customers, our associates or our company. As soon as we heard about the possible fraudulent activity in these stores, we took action to protect our customers. We are working with law enforcement authorities to investigate this activity and are taking additional steps to help ensure that our customers’ transactions are safe, including increasing store inspections,” she said.
Sources:
American Web Media
AOL
Krebs On Security
The post New Identity Scam Targets Walmart Shoppers! Are You Safe? appeared first on David Avocado Wolfe.