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What is a Card Skimmer?

April 26, 2017ATM Bank Banks card card reader cards Debit card fraud identity theft skimmer

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What is a Card Skimmer?

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A card skimmer is a device which is designed to steal information from a card with a magnetic strip, classically a credit card, when the card is used in a legitimate financial transaction. Once collected on the device, the skimmer can be used to make a clone of the card which can be used for fraudulent purposes, or the collected information can be utilized for online and over the phone transactions which do not require a physical credit card, only the information on the card. The annual losses caused by card skimmers are difficult to estimate, but appear to be upwards of one billion US Dollars (USD). There are several ways in which a card skimmer can be used. Some skimmers are designed as standalone units through which a card must be swiped. For example, an unscrupulous restaurant employee might carry a skimmer so that he or she can run a customer’s credit card to pay for a tab, and then run the card through the skimmer to collect the information. This type of skimmer can usually store