Credit card cloners caught in police raid
Two prolific fraudsters have been arrested as police cracked a UK credit card cloning ring. The conmen stole details from supermarket shoppers and used them to go on a global spending spree.
Credit card fraudsters sting supermarket shoppers
Police suspect customers PINs were stolen at the checkout , their cards cloned and the copies used in fraudulent transactions.”
Police said the two men, who were based in Birmingham, are accused of stealing thousands of pounds from the bank accounts of supermarket shoppers.
Local branches of Morrisons and Asda were among the supermarkets allegedly targeted by the men.
Dawn raid
The pair were arrested in a dawn raid this week by the Dedicated Cheque and Plastic Crime Unit (DCPCU), a specialised unit aimed at capturing criminals who deal in credit card and cheque fraud. It comprises officers from the Metropolitan and City of London police forces and banking industry fraud investigators.
Equipment recovered in the raid included stolen chip and PIN terminals, card account numbers, a card reader/writer, computer software and fake magnetic stripe cards.
Detectives suspect supermarket customers has their PINs stolen as they paid for goods at the supermarket checkout. The cards were then cloned in a sophisticated card factory before the copies were used in face-to-face transactions.
Transactions from the cloned cards were recorded all over the world. Fraudulent purchases on the stolen cards were even made as far away as Trinidad and Nigeria.
Police investigation
The DCPCU investigation into the cloning ring continues and detectives are particularly interested in finding out how the criminals tampered with the supermarket chip and PIN readers to steal the information.
According to experts in credit card fraud, thieves can steal information in a number of ways.
Sometimes a supermarket staff member will be paid to help thieves, or a group of thieves will pretend to be chip and PIN workmen to alter the device.
Alternatively, a fraudster will get a job in the store and gain the trust of the other staff members before tampering with devices while he works.
Police believe up to 30 different shops across the country have been targeted by the criminals involved in cloning scams.
A clear message
Detective Chief Inspector John Folan, who heads the DCPCU said: “These arrests are a significant development in our fight against the organised criminal gangs responsible for this type of fraud.
“We are sending a very clear warning to fraudsters that these crimes will not be tolerated and that we will continue to target them and disrupt their fraudulent activity.”
DCI Folan warned credit card fraud was on the rise at home as well as abroad and urged the public to take steps to always shield PINs from view when using cards and to keep card details secure.
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