Texas Cracks Down on Credit Card Skimming With Potential Life Sentences

Texans tend to use debit or credit cards for most purchases.  On any given day, we are pulling up to a gas pump, swiping our card, and filling our tank.  Others are just going to the grocery store to get some shopping done, and when it comes to paying, we tap, insert, or swipe.

However, many times, we are oblivious that someone is stealing our card information and PIN.  It's called card skimming.

What is Credit Card Skimming?

According to the FBI,

Skimming occurs when devices illegally installed on or inside ATMs, point-of-sale (POS) terminals, or fuel pumps capture card data and record cardholders’ PIN entries.

The skimmers that criminals use are usually placed over the original card readers at gas pumps, ATMs, and pay terminals in stores.  They look just like the real thing, so it's tough to see any difference.

Read More: The Most Wanted Fugitive in Texas Right Now |

How Can You Detect a Card Skimmer?

There are ways to check to see if a card skimmer is being used:

• Tug on it; if it moves or detaches, it's a skimmer
• Look for broken security stickers; most businesses put stickers on their card readers, and a broken sticker is a sign that a skimmer is being used
• Small holes in the readers, this could be a camera
• It looks different from the other card readers

How is Texas Cracking Down on Credit Card Skimmers?

One county in Texas is letting criminals know that they are not going to put up with credit card skimming fraud. Smith County, which includes Tyler, Texas, is letting these criminals they will not put up with this kind of theft.  Three people have been sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of participating in credit card skimming.

• Romanian Fabrizio Slatineanu, 25 years of age, was sentenced to life in prison
• Yoelvis Herrera, 33 years of age, received a 65 year sentence
• Felipe Nieves-Perez, 33 years of age, is serving life in prison

Stealing someone's financial information using a skimmer can have devastating effects on a person's life. It can lead to a severe financial crisis, leaving them to struggle with the consequences for many years. Therefore, it is understandable that this Texas county imposes strict penalties on those who ruin lives, often sentencing them to lengthy prison terms that very well could last the rest of their lives.