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Florida sees massive increase in credit card skimmers in 2017, officials say

In all of 2016, officials with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services said they found and removed 220 credit card skimmers from businesses across the state.
With three weeks left in 2017, that number has more than doubled.
A credit card skimmer is a device that attaches to the legitimate credit card scanner at a gas station or ATM and records the details on the card’s magnetic strip.
Many times, there will also be a camera surreptitiously attached to the skimmer to record that individual’s PIN, officials said.
Betsy Franceschini has firsthand knowledge of criminals’ use of skimmers.
A victim herself, Franceschini said the thieves got her card number and started using it.
“I had pumped gas at that place,” she said. “The amount that was taken out of the credit card was quite a bit.”
Now, she worries it could happen again.
“That’s always a concern, every time I drive to get gas,” Franceschini said.
Jose Resto has managed an Orlando gas station for nearly seven years, and even with security cameras and employees working around the clock, skimmers have been placed at his station at least three times in recent years.
“They’ve gotten to the point where they are so small, like, even if you open up the gas pump, there’s no way to tell,” Resto said. “Honestly, we didn’t notice. It’s the guy that comes out and checks the pumps every month.”
Officials urge consumers to protect themselves from skimmers by paying in cash, using a debit or credit card inside, or using the gas pump closest to the cashier.
Chip readers, which are much more secure, are required to be installed on gas pumps by 2020.
Karen Parks

Karen Parks, WFTV.com

Karen Parks is a reporter at WFTV.