The $13,000 Big Mac
Ever been to a drive-thru and arrived home to find you’ve been cheated out of your chicken nuggets or shorted an order of fries? But maybe that’s not all you’re missing. Imagine your surprise when you check your bank account and find that you’re also down hundreds or thousands of dollars. Either the price of fast food has skyrocketed or you’ve been scammed.
In Olympia, Washington, a teenage McDonalds employee was arrested for skimming customers’ credit card numbers at the drive-thru window. Skimming is a method of stealing credit or debit card numbers while processing a payment. When the card is skimmed, the thief uses a portable card reader to retrieve and store the card information electronically. The data can then be used to charge purchases to the victim.
In the Olympia case, the 17 year-old swiped each card twice—once for the legitimate transaction, and once for his own personal use. The enterprising lad then used the card numbers to buy gift cards, purchase merchandise, and resell it on eBay and Craigslist. The official haul was $13,000, but police suspect the actual figure to be much higher.
Skimming can occur at a restaurant, store, gas station, or anywhere else that a card transaction takes place, including an ATM. From fast food joints to high-end steakhouses to craft stores, the con artists have us covered. What can we do to protect ourselves?
The best way to avoid skimming is to use cash. This may not always be possible, but do it whenever you can, especially for small purchases. If you are handing over your card to someone, don’t let it out of your sight. In England, handheld credit card swipers are brought to the table so diners never have to relinquish their cards. If you are using a self-service machine in the checkout line or an ATM, give the machine the onceover before you use it. If anything looks unusual or out of place, don’t insert your card.
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