SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Another credit card skimmer has been found in Central New York, one of over a dozen found in stores since July 4th weekend.
While Walmart’s across Central New York have been the main targets for these scams, the latest skimmer was found at a Save A Lot Food location in Cortlandville, according to CNY Central. With the scammers expanding to other store chains, grocery shopping is becoming a dangerous task for cardholders.
Skimmers are devices that are placed on top of pin pads, usually in self-checkout lanes. These devices collect the card information of unsuspecting shoppers for future use by the scammers. Most skimmers are undetectable by shoppers unless a shopper knows what to look for.
Syracuse native, Brett Keegan, says he has changed some of his normal shopping habits.
“I went to Walmart the other day and used cash,” Keegan said. “You can’t be too careful.”
Syracuse.com reports that at least 13 skimmers were found at various Walmarts across Central New York, but this latest skimmer found at a different chain is cause for concern. A store manager, who wished to remain anonymous, said skimmers are easy to catch in his store because of the checkout location, but grocery stores were tougher to oversee.
“At a grocery store where all the aisles are open, it would be a real problem,” he said. “I would notice it, but it’s real easy to miss.”
This store manager works at a nationally-recognized pharmacy, making him aware of the slight differences between his machines and the fraudulent ones. He had advice for shoppers to help them stay safe while shopping.
“Be very, very careful. Don’t slide your card if you have the chip because the chip encrypts it,” he said. “Or use Apple Pay, which also encrypts it… You don’t know what the register buttons look like at every store that you go to, but if you can look at it and memorize that then do that as well.”
Another tip comes from Keegan, who said he likes to “tug” on the device to make sure there is no skimmer over the pin pad. This goes for pin pads at both stores and ATMs, as there are skimming devices for both.
These tips will help you keep your personal information exactly that– personal.
