Within the past two weeks, Howard county police have found skimming devices at two different gas stations. On November 12th a skimming device was located at the Exxon in the 10100 block of Little Patuxent Parkway in Columbia. On November 21st, a skimmer was found at another Exxon station in the 8200 block of Snowden River Parkway.
Police warn that skimmer technology is getting smaller and harder to find but there are precautions that customers can take:
• Look for signs of tampering. Check for loose or crooked keypads
• Choose a pump within view of the gas station attendant.
• If you use a debit card at the pump, run it as a credit card instead of entering your PIN.
• Consider paying for your gas inside the station or kiosk.
• If you discover fraudulent activity on your card, contact your bank immediately, then call police.
