Debit Card Jacked

[Mr Evilwrench]

Tried to buy a riding lawnmower a couple of weeks ago, card declined. I could've bought six of these things with this card, so I called them. Apparently they flagged my card AND PIN as compromised. The only place I ever use my PIN is their ATM, so this would have to be their fault. Finally got a new card a couple of days ago. Inconvenient as all get out.

I'm well aware of the skimmers on machines. The cards that can be read without contact have an RFID circuit on them. They're the ones that you can do the "quick swipe" or whatever they call that; it's where you don't have to slide it through the slot, just put it on top. There's usually some mark on it, but if you know what you're looking for, you can tell if it has it. I've had one, but PNC doesn't seem to be issuing those anymore.

The reader pings the card, which replies with its number. A malevolent person can make a machine that can ping the cards just like a real reader, then transcribe numbers to ISO7811 cards, and use them just like credit cards. It takes a good bit of knowledge and some equipment, but once you have it, it's not that big a deal. Yes, I have it. Thank your deity of choice (if you have one) that despite my name I'm a good person.

 

[jkaetz]

Tried to buy a riding lawnmower a couple of weeks ago, card declined. I could've bought six of these things with this card, so I called them. Apparently they flagged my card AND PIN as compromised. The only place I ever use my PIN is their ATM, so this would have to be their fault. Finally got a new card a couple of days ago. Inconvenient as all get out.

I'm well aware of the skimmers on machines. The cards that can be read without contact have an RFID circuit on them. They're the ones that you can do the "quick swipe" or whatever they call that; it's where you don't have to slide it through the slot, just put it on top. There's usually some mark on it, but if you know what you're looking for, you can tell if it has it. I've had one, but PNC doesn't seem to be issuing those anymore.

The reader pings the card, which replies with its number. A malevolent person can make a machine that can ping the cards just like a real reader, then transcribe numbers to ISO7811 cards, and use them just like credit cards. It takes a good bit of knowledge and some equipment, but once you have it, it's not that big a deal. Yes, I have it. Thank your deity of choice (if you have one) that despite my name I'm a good person.

If the RFID skimmers work anywhere nearly as poorly as the merchant readers, I'm not too worried. Half the time I try to use those things they won't read the card. Wouldn't you look funny waving some equipment around everyone's hip pocket as well?

 

[chris46131]

Do these people ever get caught?

Very, very rarely.

 

[eldirector]

Our Visa got nabbed a few years ago. A couple of $300 purchases at a Mexican grocery in southern California. Nope, that wasn't me! We had shopped online just the day before, so I'm sure that was the source. The CC company got it straight pretty quick, and we got new cards within the week.

I don't use my debit card for ANYTHING other than the ATM. To much risk with real money. If I swipe, it is with a credit card. Both my Visa and Discover have pretty good theft protection. I've got purchase limits set (anything over $200 requires authorization), and they have been great at noticing unusual purchases (I get a call on my cell to confirm within a few minutes).

 

[Mr Evilwrench]

Well, what you need to clone the card is more substantial than what you need to read it; you could get that close enough without anyone noticing. BGs have also gotten jobs at restaurants or whatever, and used pocket sized magnetic strip readers when they had physical custody of the card. My parents bought flowers for some guy's girlfriend in California some years back, and that's what had happened.