In the modern age of technology, the risk of theft goes beyond thieves physically stealing your money. One source of theft that is very prevalent today is credit card skimming. Credit card skimmers insert a device into payment terminals in places like gas pumps and ATMs. When you swipe or insert your card, the device copies the information and transmits it to the thief. Every day, more and more people are becoming victims of this method of fraud. The key to avoiding credit card skimmers is learning how to recognize them. In this post, we will list the three best ways to recognize a credit card skimmer.
The first way is to check for any movement on the payment terminal. Skimmers can be hidden on top or underneath the pin pad. Try moving it around a little and see if anything moves. If you notice any movement, or anything seems unnaturally loose, its best to play it safe and use a different machine.
Another way to recognize a skimmer is to compare the machine you’re about to use to those around it. If you’re at a gas station or outside a bank and there are multiple machines around you, compare them and make sure they look the same. If one looks different, it could have a skimmer on it.
The third and final way to check for skimmers is to look for any partially obscured graphics or text. If a credit card skimmer has been installed onto the machine, it might cover up pieces of the machine – which means it could cover up graphics or text that came with the machine. For example, if a word or picture is cut off, that’s a telltale sign that the machine has been tampered with.
In the age of credit card and digital fraud, the best strategy for staying safe is awareness. By learning to recognize threats like these, you’ll be able to avoid falling victim to them.