If you recently purchased gasoline at a Smithfield convenience store, Smithfield Police suggest that you keep a close eye on your debit and credit card statements.
On Thursday, an employee servicing the gasoline pumps at the Circle K convenience store at 1137 N. Brightleaf Boulevard, at the intersection of Booker Dairy Road, discovered a credit card skimming device on one of the pumps. They immediately notified police who took possession of the illegal device.
Skimmers are illegal card readers attached to payment terminals. The Federal Trade Commission says the card readers grab data off a credit or debit cards magnetic stripe without your knowledge. Criminals sell the stolen data or use it to buy items online. You won’t know your information has been stolen until you get your statement or an overdraft notice.
Police Captain R. Sheppard said anyone who recently purchased gasoline at the Circle K and used their debit or credit card at the fuel pump should closely monitor future billing statements for accuracy. If you discover any fraudulent activity, report it to your nearest law enforcement agency and also notified your card company.
Police are working with the convenience store to try and determine how long the skimmer had been on the pump. So far, police have not received any reports of any stolen data linked to this particular skimmer device.
