It's easy and convenient. A quick swipe and your done, but that swipe could cost you more than just your gas.
"It's shocking, you don't realize it and it's a lot of work to deal with," said Lieutenant Tyson Pogue of the Madera County Sheriff’s Department.
For Pogue, an ordinary stop at the twenty-two mile house gas station in Madera cost him his credit card number.
"So I noticed I got a call from my bank Christmas Eve and they asked me if I was in Las Vegas, obviously I was not. So I learned that my credit card was compromised and somebody was using it at a CVS," Pogue said.
Lieutenant Pogue wasn't alone. Authorities say at least 15 customers at the 22-mile house gas station had their card numbers stolen in November and December of last year.
"Most likely in this case there is a device called a skimmer that can be placed on the gas tank where you put in your credit card," said Madera County Sheriff John Anderson.
The hidden device takes your information when you swipe your card and can be very difficulty to detect, but Joey Fernandez of the Better Business Bureau says there is one simple way around it.
"The first thing we always tell people is that if you can avoid paying at the pump, walk into the store and pay with your credit card or debit card at the actual register," said Fernandez.
