Based on the article “Gas Pump Skimmer Sends Card Data Via Text” by Brian Krebs, devices called skimmers are being using to commit acts of fraud against unknowingly victims. These devices are called skimmers and thieves are installing them inside of fuel pumps to steal credit card and debit card data. Once these thieves have a hold of this data they can make purchases with it and can even drain a person’s bank account with their debit card data.
These skimmer devices use Bluetooth to send victims’ credit or debit card data to the thieves wirelessly with any Bluetooth enabled device. Thieves are upgrading from these Bluetooth pump skimmers to skimmers that can send a victim’s data through a simple text message. With this type of upgrade, thieves
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States such as Arizona, California and Florida, have been targeted the most with the old school Bluetooth pump skimmers; however, they have not found any of the new text message pump skimmers that New York has fallen victim to. Citizens and tourists in these states should consider paying inside instead of risking the threat of having their card data being stolen. The minor inconvenience of paying inside could be enough to prevent a major inconvenience of have your card data stolen and turning your life upside down.
According to Krebs’s article, this type of work is performed by organized crime rings who have a history of pedaling stolen card data. They are able to install these skimmers by using master keys to open the fuel pumps. With this method, these thieves are able to leave the pumps virtually unscathed to the naked eye.
To combat against these pump skimmers, fuel stations are required by Visa to install chip-capable readers at their pumps by October 1st, 2020, says Krebs. Along with the chip-capable readers, fuel stations are upgrading to pumps with more physical security. These upgraded pumps include custom locks and security cameras to provide filling station customers more peace of mind and