Credit card skimmer found in area BP gas pump

UPDATE @ 7:50 p.m.: Montgomery County Auditor Karl Keith said inspectors with the Weights and Measures section of his office inspected a dozen locations in Montgomery County on Thursday in locating the one skimmer at a BP station on National Road in Vandalia, near Interstate 70.

They zeroed in on locations near major interstates, near traffic centers, he said, because thieves can install the credit card skimming device in seconds.

The local checks were spurred by the discovery of a credit card skimmer found at a gas station in Marietta, Ohio, on Oct. 29, Keith said. The local inspections involved opening gas pumps to see if anything inside them had been tampered with.

That skimmer has been turned over to Vandalia police, who have started an investigation. Keith said his office also suggested that the FBI be contacted as well.

“We want to make people aware of it, that they know we are out there checking,” he said.

Keith said short of not using a credit card to pay for gas, consumers should make sure they’re not using a debit card because that requires a pin number. It’s more difficult for thieves to get personal information from a credit card, he said.

Consumers also should alert the business if they notice a broken seal at a gas pump or unusual activity by people around a gas pump.

According to the county auditor’s website, weights and measures officials inspect more than 7,000 gas pumps each year.

FIRST REPORT

A credit card skimmer found in a BP gas pump at a station on National Road has triggered a county auditor’s office investigation.

According to the Montgomery County auditor’s office, the device was found today and this is the first one investigators with the office have found locally in at least two years.

The skimmers are used to record credit card numbers. The office is issuing a warning for people who may have used that particular pump.

We will update this report as we get more information. Stay with whio.com for breaking news.

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