The Secret Service says skimmers steal more than $1 billion from U.S. consumers annually, money that often funds organized crime.

Reaper could be a “revolutionary, watershed moment” in the battle against skimmers.

“If indeed this new technology could be done on a cost effective basis, it could put the skimmers out of business. It would save people tremendous amounts of money and aggravation,” Weisman said.

Right now, it costs about $50 to make each Skim Reaper, Traynor said, but his team is working daily to get that number down.

In New York, Flanagan said more testing needs to be done but he is impressed with early results. Mainly, it allows untrained officers to be employed in the anti-skimming effort, where before trained investigators were needed to identify the illegal devices.

“I have four detectives who do the ATM skimming full time,” he said. “They’re all extremely busy with the amount of work we do, so when I can take someone who is untrained, or has some more free time to go out and do these inspections, it certainly is a help.”

Nolen Scaife, one of the graduate students who designed the device with Traynor, said the team is working to improve the Skim Reaper’s design so that it is wallet-size. Then, consumers would be able to carry the device and dip it into a card reader before they get gas or use the ATM to ensure they aren’t being skimmed.

“There’s no greater feeling than feeling the work you’re doing has wide-ranging impact,” Scaife said. “We’re glad to be able to produce something that will curb the tide.”