An incident happened yesterday that nearly involved law enforcement, and served as a reminder to pass along to you. But first, a tiny bit of my background so you’ll know where this comes from.
It’s a long story, but part of my background in risk management involves a number of years working a variety of case types as a private investigator. Many of the cases I worked involved fraud or other forms of theft including identity theft (which is why I provide useful information in that area in Disaster Prep 101). Today, I still maintain my investigator’s licensing and my certification as an instructor though most of my work centers on terrorism and natural disaster preparedness.
So, back to the incident.
I was in a retail establishment, had just finished paying for my items and was standing at the end of the checkout counter to look at a sales flier real quick.
The guy in line behind me was checking out and gave the cashier a credit card. The card was swiped and then I noticed the cashier look at the card and then turn and type something on a small pad next to the register. It was a cell phone.
The customer got his receipt and I tapped him on the shoulder and said “Hang on just a second, I think the cashier might have something of yours.”
I asked the cashier what the device was next to the register and why it was being accessed during a transaction. I was angrily told “It’s none of your concern sir.”
I said “I need to talk with your manager right NOW!” The cashier got on the PA system and called for a manager. I turned to the guy I had asked to wait and explained to him why this might be a risk. I was still keeping a close eye on the cashier.
While we were waiting (only a minute or so) for the manager, the cashier furtively placed a calculator next to the register and slid the cell phone into her front left pants pocket.
The manager arrived and I explained quickly who I was, what I do, and what I’d seen. On hearing that, the four of us went into the manager’s office where I confronted the cashier on what I’d seen. She claimed it was a calculator she was using to calculate tax. Before I could respond, the manager said “The register does all that. Why did you need to figure tax? Let me see your phone.”
The entire affair took about an hour and when I asked to see the store’s surveillance footage, the cashier confessed. Turns out she was simply in the middle of a text conversation with a friend and no credit card data was stolen or shared. She was scared because she wasn’t supposed to be texting while on the clock.
But, it served as a great reminder how easy it is to have our data stolen so I thought I’d pass this along while giving a few identity theft prevention tips.
1. Shred your trash and don’t make it easy for thieves to get your information that way. This is pretty much common knowledge.
2. Don’t fill in the blanks for “officials” over the phone. Some thieves will dig up a little information on you and then call to make it sound like they’re with the bank, a doctor’s office, collection agency or some other authority figure that “needs to verify your information.” Don’t do it. If it’s a company name you recognize, tell them you’ll hang up and call them back through their main number that you get from your known source.
3. Don’t give out too much info online. Another bit of common knowledge.
4. At ATMs, pay close attention to the card reader. Most are internal to the ATM and don’t protrude from the surface of the machine. If it does protrude, it might be that someone has stuck a fake reader on top of the ATM for the sole purpose of having their reader get the card info off your magnetic stripe. Some thieves even go to the length of adding a small surveillance camera to read your pin number as you try to access your account.
5. Your credit card. Granted, you’re probably careful with your card, but here’s where this incident comes into play. Some card thieves use cell phones to steal info. They may use their phone’s camera to photo your card, or they may simply dial your card number as if it was a phone number. Either way, there’s your credit card number on their phone. I’ve read numerous case studies where cashiers used good memories for bad reasons. They’d look at a card, hand it back to you, and then turn and punch in the numbers or write them down in a second. With some stores, all they have to remember is the first 12 number since they can print a duplicate receipt which usually shows the last 4 digits of your card. There have also been cases where conniving cashiers brought in an electronic reader and swiped the card through it as if it was part of the store’s cash register system. Personally, I’m a big fan of stores where the card swipe machine lets you maintain possession of your card and it’s never handed to a cashier at all.
The bottom line of all this is to remind you to be aware of who has access to your financial information and to keep your eyes open even when you think you’re in a safe place. After all, that’s also the essence of good disaster preparedness, right?
Paul Purcell – Disaster Prep 101
Available through 1-800-Prepare