Fake Checkout Credit Card Reader Found in Supermarket, Results in Theft

Via cbs5.com -

An ATM and credit card reader in a checkout aisle at the Los Gatos Lunardi's supermarket was recently switched, resulting in more than two dozen reported cases of identity theft, a Los Gatos/Monte Sereno Police Department spokesman said Tuesday.

Police received the first reports from victims who said their credit or debit cards had been used fraudulently on Sunday night and additional victim reports continued on Monday and today, according to police spokesman Tam McCarty.

"They started pouring in," McCarty said.

Police believe the victims all had their card numbers stolen at the Los Gatos Lunardi's, 720 Blossom Hill Road, after officials from Lunardi's contacted them about a problem with one of their card readers.

"It was a switched card reader at one of the aisles," McCarty said.
Recent shoppers of the Los Gatos Lunardi's should check the status of their bank or credit card accounts for charges they did not make, according to police.

"Specifically look for charges in the Southern California area, Pasadena, Huntington; that's where most of them seem to be," McCarty said.

Anyone who finds fraudulent charges on an account should contact the local police department or the Los Gatos/Monte Sereno Police Department at (408) 354-8600.