ORLANDO, Fla. -- Over the past three months, inspectors with the Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services have swept through Florida checking gas-station dispensers for skimmers, devices placed illegally on pumps to capture consumers' credit-card or debit-card information. Commissioner Adam H. Putnam has announced that the department has uncovered 103 skimmers used for identity theft at the 7,571 gas stations inspected.
Along with the statewide sweep, Putnam has worked to protect consumers by partnering with the Florida Petroleum Council and the Florida Petroleum Marketers & Convenience Store Association on an initiative intended to educate the industry about ways they can help protect consumers from skimmers.
The council and association have distributed a one-page informational sheet to their members with helpful information, such as “what to know,” “how to help,” and “who to call,” in order to engage gas station employees in this consumer protection initiative.
Click here to view the sheet.
“We will employ every weapon in the arsenal to protect Florida's consumers and visitors from identity theft occurring at gas pumps,” said Putnam. “While the overall percentage of skimmers at pumps is low, one skimmer at a pump in Florida is one too many. I thank the Florida Petroleum Council and the Florida Petroleum Marketers & Convenience Store Association for partnering with us, so we can involve gas station employees in our consumer protection efforts.”
“The petroleum industry is committed and fully serious about partnering with Commissioner Adam Putnam to aggressively fight the illegal use of credit-card skimming devices used for identity theft. The Florida Petroleum Council and the department have a long and successful history at devising methods to identify and prevent the use of these devices,” said David Mica, executive director of the Florida Petroleum Council.
Inspectors found 16 skimmers in Miami-Dade County; 11 in Palm Beach County; nine in Broward County; six each in Brevard, Hillsborough and Orange counties; five in Oceola County; four in Polk County; three each in Alachua, Duval, Lake, Lee, Martin and Volusia counties; two each in Citrus, Hernando, Marion, Monroe, Okaloosa, Saint Lucie and Suwannee counties; and one each in Bay, Charlotte, Pasco, Pinellas, Sarasota, Seminole, Sumter and Walton counties.
Click here to view the complete list of stations where the Agriculture Department found skimming devices.
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