Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Gas-station skimmers draining more wallets
Data-stealing devices becoming more sophisticated
Despite statewide attempts to crack down on thieves using skimmers to steal credit and debit card data at gas pumps, use of the devices is still rising, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services records show.
The number of skimmers found so far this year has already surpassed the number found all last year in Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties.
A skimmer, a small electronic device that records information from a card’s magnetic strip, can be hard to detect. The device can be installed inside a gas pump within minutes.
As of June 20, 46 skimmers had been discovered in Broward County. That compares with 40 found in 2016 and 34 in 2015. The rise is greater in Palm Beach County, where 52 skimmers had been found as of June 8, up from 22 in 2016 and 19 in 2015.
In Miami-Dade, 22 skimmers have been found across the county this year, up from nine in 2016 and 17 in 2015, state records show.
Aaron Keller, a spokesman for the Florida Department of Agriculture, said the agency’s original purpose was to inspect the quality of fuel at gas stations, but local law enforcement agencies tipped them off in 2015 to the growing problem of skimmers.
Since 2015, more than 400 skimmers have been found at gas stations across Florida. So far this year, at least 251 have been found.
Keller says increased enforcement and better detection of skimmers by fuel inspectors could be a contributing factor in the rising numbers.
“We’re finding more of them, but it’s kind of hard to correlate,” he said.
Better technology could be playing another role, including skimmers with Bluetooth, allowing thieves to install the skimmer, then wait in a nearby car and simply download the stolen financial information.
The wireless technology eliminates the risk of going back to the pump to get the device and being caught, Keller said.
“Bluetooth is the emerging trend, but we’ve found one where criminals install an HD camera that will look down at the keypad to steal your pin,” Keller said.
Coral Springs Police spokeswoman Sgt. Carla Kmiotek said some investigators think the reason for the increase is simply because the crime is very lucrative. Hundreds of people could come into contact with each skimmer, with a take of about $1,000 per person, Keller said.
“Criminals sell the data on the black market. We’re seeing a lot of black-market fuel purchases with compromised information,” Keller said.
Recent cases include two skimmers found June 19 at a 7-Eleven at 4490 Weston Road in Davie. Davie Police spokesman Sgt. Mark Leone said they’re the second and third skimmers found at the gas station this year, with the first found in March.
Placed inside the gas pump, the skimmers could easily go undetected, but pieces of broken safety seal tape on pumps are a big giveaway that someone might have tampered with the pump.
“If someone sees anyone tampering with a pump, we are asking that they call 911 and attempt to get a license plate number if possible,” Leone said.
In the past month, five skimmers were discovered at four gas stations in Coral Springs, Kmiotek said.
Through a Tweet on Tuesday, Boynton Beach Police urged people to check their financial statements after a skimmer was found at a Chevron gas station at 217 N. Federal Hightway on June 12.
Lawmakers are trying to crack down on skimmers, including a 2016 law that makes the use of a skimmer a second-degree felony with a maximum 15-year prison sentence. The crime was previously a third-degree felony punishable by a maximum of five years in prison. New laws also mandate more security at the pump, including safety seal tape.
On June 19 at the Windsor Square Chevron at 4600 Coral Ridge Drive in Coral Springs, tape remained on the pump but an investigator said it didn’t belong to the gas station, according to state records.
Keller recommends using gas pumps within eyesight of the gas station clerk.
“We do find most often, the pumps [with skimmers] are on the outskirts of the gas station. That’s the easiest way to put the skimmers on without being detected,” he said.
Keller also recommends using cash, but if that isn’t an option, use a credit card rather than a debit card.
“Credit gives consumers more protection. You have a better chance of getting money back from credit cards,” he said.
Investigators ask anyone finding a skimmer at a gas station or who thinks their financial information might have been compromised to call the Department of Agriculture at 800-435-7352.