TROY, MO – A skimming scam was stopped after a Troy, Mo bank noticed a suspicious device attached to the card reader of one of the bank’s ATMs. Police say the device was on the ATM for approximately 12 hours. The bank has notified customers who swiped their cards during that time and no fraudulent activity has been detected, according to police.
Det. Tony Stewart with the Troy Police Department said the location of the ATM was not being released because investigators believe that information could jeopardize their ongoing investigation.
Stewart said it’s a good idea to pull on the card reader of an ATM just to make sure nothing is attached. He said skimming devices steal information from ATM, credit and debit cards when they are swiped. Crooks also install hidden cameras above ATM keypads in an attempt to steal customers PIN numbers.
“Essentially what they can do is clone blank cards to make them appear to be your debit card,” said Stewart. He said those cards can then be used to make purchases by the crooks.
Stewart believed this was the first time a skimming device was discovered in Troy. As of Monday evening, no arrests had been made.
