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Skimmers found by Secret Service across metro Atlanta
A nation-wide initiative to fight fraud ended up in metro Atlanta on Thursday and Friday. In all, Secret Service agents found 40 skimmers across the area. They said that makes the area the second worst across the U.S. for skimmers by percentage.
ATLANTA - Federal agents recovered dozens of card skimmers across metro Atlanta during a two-day sweep to stop fraud.
What we know:
The Secret Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture and other agencies joined forces Thursday and Friday for a large-scale sweep that turned up at least 40 skimmers in metro Atlanta.
Skimmers are small devices secretly attached to debit card keypads to steal card data, including information from Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards.
The agents searched different shops in College Park, downtown Atlanta, East Point and Forest Park for devices designed to steal money and benefits from unsuspecting shoppers.
This effort is part of a nationwide initiative targeting EBT fraud. Investigators say metro Atlanta, by percentage, ranks second in the country for skimmer discoveries — just behind New York City.
The investigation is highly focused, targeting locations where EBT users are most likely to shop.
What they're saying:
"We're looking at the stores the consumers who use EBT would use. The Dollar Stores, Dollar Tree -- We'd see it in a Walmart. We try to look at the analytics," said Mark Haskins, a USDA investigator.
Officials say most skimmers are easy to miss. While sometimes the crime involves store employees, they say that’s not common. Instead, much of this activity is linked to transnational crime rings.
The Source: Information in this article came from FOX 5's Kevyn Stewart speaking with the task force who found the skimmers.