How to Avoid Card Skimmers at ATMs and on Payment Devices in Stores and at the Pump

8 tips to protect yourself from criminals who install skimmers on card readers to steal users’ cash or SNAP benefits

Ken Budd,

Updated May 04, 2026

AARP

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Updated May 04, 2026

Paul Spella

Key takeaways

Criminals use skimmers to steal cash or EBT benefits, directly impacting people who rely on SNAP for food purchases.
Investigators say many skimming devices closely mimic real card readers, delaying detection.
Vulnerable machines include non-bank ATMs and card readers in unattended checkout areas.

Before the police ended their scheme, Patricia Bogdan and George Lazar stole money from Pennsylvania residents who likely had little to spare. The pair installed a skimmer — a device placed in credit and debit card readers that captures data from the card’s magnetic strip — in a Pennsylvania convenience store. Because it replicated a legitimate payment terminal, it took employees a few days to spot it.

In that time, they stole account information from customers’ Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) accounts – targeting the low-income individuals who receive benefits through the federal Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP). The criminals extracted the information remotely via a Bluetooth-enabled device, then used the money to make purchases elsewhere.

“EBT benefits are not abstract dollars. They are groceries, meals, and security for working families who depend on them,” said State Inspector General Michelle A. Henry, announcing their arrests in March.

Skimming scammers like Bogdan and Lazar are keeping law enforcement busy and showing no signs of slowing down. In February, a Baltimore man was arrested for installing skimming devices at 7-Eleven stores and other locations across Maryland. Another couple was charged in March with a multi-state EBT card skimming operation that included installing a skimming device at a Family Dollar store in Alabama. And the list goes on.

FICO Card Alert Service, a widely used compromise notification service, found a 90 percent increase in debit cards compromised at ATMs in 2025 over 2024. The company notes that 9 out of 10 incidents occurred at non-bank ATMs. “Unfortunately, over the past several years, we have seen this problem continually get worse,” says Debbie Cobb, FICO’s vice president of product management for fraud solutions.

The economic damage is jaw-dropping: Skimming costs financial institutions and consumers more than $1 billion annually, according to the FBI.

How card skimmers work

With fuel pumps (a frequent target), skimmers are often attached to the machine’s internal wiring, making them hard to detect. In other cases — as with ATMs or point-of-sale card readers — criminals attach the skimmers over the card slot.

Criminals sometimes take additional steps to steal your PIN at ATMs. Some will place tiny cameras on or near the machine to record you as you enter your number. Another tactic is to put an alternative keypad over the real one to capture your keystrokes.

The scams may seem James Bond-level sophisticated, but they’re actually quite simple, experts say.

“Skimming scams are sophisticated only in the sense that they require hardware and tampering,” says Petros Efstathopoulos, vice president of research for the RSA Conference, an annual cybersecurity event. “[The criminals] have to attach the malicious hardware to the devices in a stealthy manner. But it’s fairly easy to capture the card information from the magnetic stripe and use it online or even replicate the card.”

Criminals also use skimming to target EBT cards and steal recipients’ SNAP benefits. Until recently, the EBTs didn’t have chips, which help protect against skimming. States are now introducing EBT cards with chips (the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service has a map showing the status of the upgrades.

How to protect yourself from losing money to card skimmers

The next time you fill your tank, use an ATM, or insert your card in any machine, take these steps to avoid skimmers.

1. Look for signs of tampering. “If a machine looks a little worn or beat up, think twice about inserting your card,” says Michael Sherwood, vice president of product at Malwarebytes, a consumer-focused cybersecurity company. Warning signs include card-reading machines with exposed cables or anything that’s loose, bent, broken, damaged, crooked, or scratched. Pull on a card slot to make sure it isn’t covered with a skimmer and wiggle the keypad for signs of an overlay, the Delaware State Police suggest.

2. Tap rather than insert your card. If your card has the tap option — and most do these days — use it. That way a skimmer can’t read your card. Sherwood also recommends paying with digital options such as Apple Pay: “Unlike the physical reader, that’s not something you can easily hack,” he says.

3. Beware of self-checkouts. Scammers need to conceal themselves while installing their skimming hardware, which makes self-checkout an easier target than a register with a clerk. “It’s not easy for [a criminal] to walk into a pharmacy, go behind the counter, and pretend to be an attendant,” says Efstathopoulos.

4. When you can, use bank ATMs. Most banks regularly inspect the ATMs at their branch offices; that’s less likely to happen with an ATM in a busy store.

5. Be careful at gas stations. Choose a well-lit pump near an attendant or a mini-mart. It’s the same principle as self-checkout: Criminals want a well-hidden spot to install their skimmers, so they’ll likely choose the pump that’s farthest away from employees.

And don’t enter PINs at the pump. Some gas pumps let you run your debit card as a credit card. If that’s an option, use it: choosing credit mode means you don’t have to enter your PIN. If you do use a pin, cover the keypad in case there are cameras recording you, Cobb advises. The best option: tap-to-pay.

6. Consider using your credit card rather than your debit card. Banks offer more protection for credit cards than debit cards. If a criminal uses your credit card number for purchases, federal law limits your liability to no more than $50. “Credit cards have a lot more backing to them — they’re more secure,” says Sherwood.

7. Be even more vigilant in busy areas. Bustling neighborhoods and Times Square-style tourist spots can be a skimmer’s paradise, the FBI warns. Among the reasons: You’re usually distracted and more likely to miss the warning signs of a skimming scam. Plus, busy areas often have many unattended ATMs, and the high pedestrian volume can make it easier for scammers to install their equipment. “You would think that all those people would discourage them, but it can actually provide cover for tinkering with the machines,” Efstathopoulos says. “If you have a busy street, and maybe only one camera, and somebody stands in front of an ATM for five minutes, there will probably be enough noise and it’s so busy that they go unobserved.”

8. For overseas travel, consider using cash. “I’ve been in situations where I'm in a taxi, and the driver has his own reader, and it just feels odd,” Sherwood says. “Cash is just safer in that situation.”

What to do if you suspect your card has been skimmed

Report the scam. If you suspect card skimming, report it to your local police and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at IC3.gov.

If you suspect your EBT card was compromised in this type of scam, the FBI says to immediately contact your state benefits agency or card issuer. Promptly change your PIN if any funds remain in your EBT account and check whether your account or EBT mobile application allows you to temporarily block or freeze transactions.

Call the AARP Fraud Watch Network's toll-free Helpline (877-908-3360), where trained volunteers provide information on scams and support and guidance for victims and their family members.

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The key takeaways were created with the assistance of generative AI. An AARP editor reviewed and refined the content for accuracy and clarity.

Ken Budd has written for National Geographic Traveler, The Atlantic, The Washington Post Magazine and many more. He is the author of a memoir, The Voluntourist.