Don’t be skimmed this Christmas

SHOPPERS are urged to be aware of being fraud victims, after a number of Leongatha shoppers approached The Star saying their card had been compromised.
In one case, a woman had $800 skimmed from her account recently, with the money trail appearing in Balnarring.
The Commonwealth Bank security team picked up the discrepancy at 2.18am on Monday, December 8 after the money was withdrawn earlier at 12.48am.
The customer endeavoured to withdraw cash at the Leongatha ATM on Friday, December 12, taking the usual precaution of covering the PIN number, but the ATM did not allow the transaction to be processed.
On entering the bank, the customer was informed of the skimming incident and advised to change the PIN number which the bank advised should be done regularly. The bank had tried to contact the customer earlier that week.
The Commonwealth Bank’s internal security team is aware of the skimming and is involved in investigations.
The customer contacted another Leongatha bank but bank staff did not report skimming incidences. The Commonwealth Bank informed its client it would pay the lost $800 into her account this week.
The Commonwealth Bank recently installed a new ATM with higher securities, however it should be noted the problem may not be with the ATM itself; the customer may have been skimmed through another source.
Card skimming is the illegal copying of information from the magnetic strip of a credit or ATM card. It is a more direct version of a phishing scam.
The scammers try to steal details to access accounts. Once scammers have skimmed a card, they can create a fake or ‘cloned’ card with the customer’s details on it. The scammer is then able to accrue charges on the customer’s account.
Card skimming is also a way for scammers to steal one’s identity (personal details) and use it to commit identity fraud.
By stealing your personal details and account numbers, the scammer may be able to borrow money or take out loans in your name.
Look out for the following warning signs:
• a shop assistant takes your card out of your sight in order to process your transaction;
• you are asked to swipe your card through more than one machine;
• you see a shop assistant swipe the card through a different machine to the one you used;
• you notice something suspicious about the card slot on an ATM (eg. an attached device); and
• you notice unusual or unauthorised transactions on your account or credit card statement.
During this holiday period, with lots of purchases made on gifts or travel, there could be many customers inconvenienced by the short term loss of cash.
If you have noticed any unusual transactions from your account, you are advised to contact your bank immediately.

Be aware: a customer uses the new Commonwealth Bank ATM, Leongatha which has enhanced security.

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Posted by Sarah Vella on Dec 23 2014. Filed under Community. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry