BEDFORD, Texas — In the game of cops versus fraudsters, Bedford Police hope a new skimmer detection device will give them the upper hand.
The department recently acquired a "Skim Scan" device to detect skimmers on gas station pumps and ATMs around town.
Skimmers are devices illegally added to credit card readers that copy information from the card so thieves can steal money from customers' accounts. The FBI estimates skimmers steal $1 billion yearly from banks and their customers.
"You basically just turn it on, you approach the gas pump, you insert the card in. If it flashes a green light when it goes in, then it indicates that this device is fine and it only has one card reader inside of it," Bedford Police Deputy Chief Bobby LaPenna explained.
However, if the light on the Skim Scan turns red, he said that indicates there may be a second reader -- a skimmer -- inside the pump.
"The best bet with this device is to catch [the fraudulent skimmer] before it catches too many people and gets their information," LaPenna said.
He said the department has not yet found a skimmer on the card readers it has checked, but other agencies have had success with the device.
"There's no other way to detect deep-insert skimmers," said Captain Jeff Roberts with the Texas Financial Crimes Intelligence Center.
He said he found a skimmer on an operation with Irving police last year using a similar device -- and the number of skimmers his agency has found is on the rise in the past fiscal year.
"The reality is it's nothing new," Roberts said. "But it's really one of those crimes that affects everybody."
LaPenna said the device is a "great tool to have," but the best tool for people trying to avoid some of the easier-to-detect skimmers is common sense.
He said using gas pumps closer to the center of the station -- where clerks can more easily keep an eye on them -- and checking the keypad and credit card slot to make sure they're not overlaid with skimmers pasted on top of the real mechanisms can help too.
"Don’t be afraid to touch these things and verify that device is what it is," LaPenna said.
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