Card skimmers found inside two Walmarts

Say Nay · ‎03-12-2010

I know this happens at gas pumps and outdoor ATMs but I'm surprised this was inside Walmart stores (and Safeway).

"In just the last few weeks, card skimmers — devices that illegally scan customers’ credit cards –have been found at two different Walmart stores. The skimmers in these cases were so convincing that they may have been in place for weeks for being discovered.

The first report came out of Fredericksburg, VA, in early May, where police say the skimmers may have been installed as far back as March. The skimmers were discovered after at least 37 account holders of a local credit union were hit by large, unexpected withdrawals from ATMs.

More recently, police in Fort Wright, KY, say a skimmer was in place at a local Walmart for a week before it was identified. No word yet on how many customers were victimized by this scheme...

Similarly convincing skimmers were used last year at Safeway stores in Colorado and California. Those skimmers were made to be undetectable to customers swiping their cards as they pay for their groceries..."

https://consumerist.com/2016/05/26/card-skimmers-found-on-walmart-self-checkout-terminals-in-two-sta...

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on the bay · ‎03-09-2010

That is awful. I hate to have to worry about this. Thanks for that information-I wouldn't have thought of it at these stores either! Scary huh?

"If you walk the footsteps of a stranger, you'll learn things you never knew. Can you sing with all the voices of the mountains? can you paint with all the colors of the wind?"

chickenbutt · ‎03-09-2010

Good grief! I'm so tired of the bad guys always being two steps ahead of the good guys!

When I go out anymore, like just to the store, post office, etc, I just carry a small wallet in which I have my credit and debit cards wrapped in aluminum foil. I try to pay attention to my surroundings when I pull a card out but it almost seems like you can't even know all what is going on around you anymore.

Fortunately, I live in a small city so I don't know what kind of peril is in the very few places I visit anymore but I figure it doesn't hurt to still be as careful as I can.

spindlegirl · ‎03-22-2014

Oh no. How do we protect ourselves!?!

AKgirl2 · ‎05-24-2016

Thanks so much for hedz up...I shop at Walmart (Anchorage) often and there are a lot of shady character s around, especially in the parking lot.j

chickenbutt · ‎03-09-2010

AKgirl wrote:
Thanks so much for hedz up...I shop at Walmart (Anchorage) often and there are a lot of shady character s around, especially in the parking lot.j

Yikes, THAT is really scary. I've been in scenarios, a very long time ago, where I felt afraid to walk through the parking lot back to my car and have actually asked an employee to walk with me to my car. That just all came back to me, reading your post. I hadn't thought about that for decades.

Stay safe!

DoneTryin · ‎03-09-2010

Inside job? I recall something I saw a security cam video in a news item last year that showed an employee at the drive-up window of a fast-food place using a skimmer. Guess she took it with her every time she left or something. Even still, one would think other employees would notice things like that, what with so many milling about getting orders out. Perhaps we're all headed back to the old-fashioned ways of just using cash.

pommom · ‎03-10-2010

Would writing a check avoid the skimmers from taking info?

If your face brightens when you meet a friend, you have struck gold. - unknown

Say Nay · ‎03-12-2010

I'm seriously considering one of these prepaid debit cards for all of my purchases. I know my credit cards protect me from unauthorized purchases but I wonder if I will ever have to defend myself if my bank denies my claim. It would be a hassle because I would have to keep loading the card up but with stuff like this happening I might be a bit safer.

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