Credit Card Skimmers

[Ed P]

AFAIK this is a low-key issue in the UK. Normally it is the check-out till that is subverted. However it is obviously becoming a big issue in the US and we may follow along behind. This SparkFun article may be something with which we should familiarise ourselves. I’m not sure if the Android app will detect skimmers in the UK but it may be something worth checking out.

[The Duke]

Really good read. Just shows how far we have come. Fascinating and scary.

I think I’ll use that app at my local Tesco pump from now on. Just to see.

I noticed yesterday my lads passport has an Nfc chip in it. My phone “bonged” and I placed them both down on the desk.

Btw I’ve now got a new pet hate, I realised last week I now hate people that don’t pay at the pump! I wish we had more of the continental style drive-thus, then I wouldn’t bother with the pay at pump myself.

[Bob Williams]

I don’t pay at pump Steve! Or at least I did, until the large new “Spar” Shell station opened on the Louth industrial estate. There is no Pay At Pump facility on any of the 12 pumps, but I have a Shell Drivers Club card, which gives out points for rewards and money off fuel, so paying instore doesn’t bother me. And having read this, I will be less inclined to use my card that way anyway, although when I used to fill up at Morrisons, I used to object to people driving into a P at P pump, then pay instore, when there were pumps without card pay available.

The Spar station I use is the biggest I have ever seen, has Costa, Subway, grocery, frozen and chilled food, a small cafe. Whoever runs Spar took a good long look at the growth of Louth industrial estate and worked out how much new build was going in. County and District Councils were also on the ball: they would not give planning permission until sufficient funds were deposited in holding accounts to cover any withdrawal from building. A percentage was kept by the Council as a non-returnable deposit. But the place keeps growing; since my No 1 gson started there as a network engineer over 4 years ago, many more companies have opened up and, biggest surprise in this day and age – no closures. The Spar sells food and fuel to all these companies, and it is situated on the last roundabout out of town, heading up the A16 to Grimsby, the Humber Bridge and various docks. Trucks, holidaymakers, farmers and locals use it, it is always busy, but gradually killing off another filling station off the next roundabout, in town. The sleepy Georgian town I came to 17 years ago, is growing as well, old Victorian blocks coming down, new flats and houses building. Might even wake up some of the Oldpharts on the Town Council, who knows!

When the Thought Police arrive at your door, think -
I'm out.

[PlaneMan]

The local ASDA to me is all pay at pump, it’s usually the cheapest as well. There’s another ASDA about 1 1/4 -1 1/2 miles away which has a mixture of pay at pump and drive through, if the local isn’t cheapest then this one is.

I have a debit card in the car for fuel only, never more than £100 on it for exactly this scenario. I can load the account with more funds in seconds should I need to with the app on my phone.

I’ve downloaded the app mentioned in the article and will give it a go next time I get fuel.

Most of the car dealerships (and the Scania one) use a Shell station that’s even closer the local ASDA, the fuel price isn’t extortionate but the dealerships get discounts depending on the amount they spend. It’s also the only one this side of Cardiff that I know of that has the capability to fuel lorries and buses.

There are loads of petrol stations near me, being very close to some major commuter routes and Cardiff center is the reason.

[Ed P]

The Store is just as vulnerable as the pump – probably more-so in this country. Most pumps now have 24/7 CCTV which afaik is never within the full control of the cashier (at least with respect to editing etc.). Anyone tampering with the pump itself would likely be caught on CCTV. In this respect the cashier’s system is more vulnerable and it was on this system that we had a reported local incident (at an ASDA iirc) a year or so ago. In this case, apparently it was a bent cashier allowing a third-party (boy-friend?) to add the skimmer. Technical details were never released but it did not sound to be as sophisticated as those featured in the Sparkfun article as the police/newspapers warned about never letting your card out of your sight..

[Author]

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