The Federal Trade Commission is warning consumers to be alert for credit card skimmers. Skimmers are illegal card readers attached to a payment terminal, such as a gas pump or an ATM machine. Identity thieves can use data obtained from cards passed through a skimmer to make online purchases. Gas pumps are particularly attractive to thieves because many do not yet use the more secure chip-card readers. Also, newer skimmers are smaller and harder to detect. Thieves can even hide one inside a gas pump.
Look for these signs that the gas pump you are about to use has a skimmer attached to it:
Additional payment precautions you can take at a gas station include:
It is a good practice to regularly monitor your credit card and bank accounts. Immediately report any unauthorized charges to your bank or credit card issuer.