Secret Service Searches Stations For Skimmers

NASHVILLE, TN -- State and federal agencies are sweeping across the Midstate, searching for credit card skimmers installed on gas station fuel pumps.

The United States Secret Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Postal Service Inspectors, the Tennessee Highway Patrol and the state agriculture department joined up in 13 teams, checking more than 2,500 pumps in an effort to locate the tiny, nefarious devices which extract critical information from the magnetic strips on the cards.

Secret Service Agent Matthew Preston told NewsChannel 5 he'd found several dozen of the devices in the last few weeks and it's virtually impossible for a customer to know if one has been attached to a pump, because most of the works are hidden away inside.

The teams also gave guidance to stations on how to prevent thieves from attaching the skimmers.

Primarily, would-be fraudsters place the devices on the pumps farthest away from the attendant. Law enforcement says pumps with chip readers are not susceptible to the skimmers, but those aren't required at gas stations until 2020. Customers can also protect themselves by paying for their gas inside.

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