numerous Apple devices, such as an Apple MacBook Pro 14 — acquisitions you never authorized. The twist in the story is that the call actually originated from your bank; you’ve fallen prey to a card skimmer. This nefarious scam can occur practically anywhere ATMs and point-of-sale terminals are present, but fuel pumps are a particularly favored target. Although you are unlikely to encounter a card skimmer at a Costco gas station. It appears that membership offers more advantages than you might expect.
The key to Costco’s ability to fend off card skimmers is quite straightforward: The company hires fuel attendants who offer service around the clock and are always nearby their pumps. Not only do these individuals assist customers, but they also inspect the machines each day. Consequently, these attendants have a constant watch on the pumps, and similar to many gas stations, Costco installs CCTV cameras for enhanced security.
These precautions leave very little opportunity for fraudsters to set up card skimming devices — you can’t simply use a skimmer to capture credit card data if someone observes you installing it. And even if a fraudster manages to evade the attendants and cameras, many Costco locations utilize tamper-proof seals on their pumps that render it nearly impossible to place a skimmer. However, these security precautions are not infallible. According to Protergo Cybersecurity, an individual successfully installed a card skimmer on a Costco gas pump and absconded with the information of countless customers.
