The United States Secret Service recovered 14 illegal credit card skimming devices at Houston-area businesses this week during an operation ahead of the World Cup.
Law enforcement officials found the devices while inspecting more than 3,000 point-of-sale terminals, ATMs and gas pumps at 372 businesses in Harris County. Removing the skimming devices, which scammers use to steal consumers’ credit card information, prevented about $14.5 million in fraud, the agency said.
“Card skimming threatens the financial security of individuals and families across our community,” said Thomas Rizza, acting special agent in charge for the Secret Service’s Houston office, in a statement. “I am proud of our team’s dedication to identify and remove these devices before they can cause harm, and for their education efforts.”
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The agency did not say exactly where the devices were found. But skimmers often target areas with high volumes of Electronic Benefit Transfer transactions and use skimming devices to steal food benefits, said Jeff Roberts, captain of the Texas Financial Crimes Intelligence Center, said in a statement.
Consumers can protect themselves by avoiding using card readers that look unusual, damaged or scratched, and by paying via tap-to-pay technology or by inserting their card’s chip, the agency said. At gas stations, consumers should run debit cards as credit cards to avoid typing in a PIN number, or use their hand to shield their PIN number from possible pinhole cameras.
The operation was timed ahead of the World Cup to help prevent international visitors from being preyed upon during their visit, Rizza said.
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This article originally published at U.S. Secret Service discovers 14 illegal credit card skimming devices in Houston ahead of World Cup.