Four Romanians arrested in France for bank data theft from a gas station. The money was withdrawn from Spain
Four Romanian citizens were arrested in France, being suspected of stealing the bank's banking data from a Vitry-Sur-Seine gas stations using hidden devices in the payment terminals. The money was then withdrawn from Spain.
Four Romanians arrested in France for bank data theft from a photo gas station: Shutterstock
Four Romanian citizens were arrested in France, being accused of mounted interception devices in the payment terminals of a Vitry-Sur-Seine gas stolen, from where the banking data of the customer stole. The information was then used to withdraw money in Spain, Le Parisien reports.
Hidden device in terminals: Customer data, transmitted in real time in Spain
The Brigade for Fraud Control in Payments (BFMP) managed to destroy the network after, three days before arrests, the representatives of the Ban Banire Book Banat Group have reported suspicious activities at the terminals of a gasoline in Val-de-Marne.
Investigators have discovered a “shimmer” device, a small device discreetly mounted inside the payment terminal, which intercepts the data transmitted between the bank card and the payment processing system. When the customers introduced their PIN, card information was captured and transmitted to Spain. From there, from cities like Barcelona and Madrid, the data was used to withdraw money.
Suspects, caught in flagrant
The French police set up a discreet supervision and identified the four Romanians in the town of Paray-Vieille-Poste, in the Essonne department. Following the searches, the authorities discovered equipment for card cloning and almost 9,000 euros in cash.
The four Romanians, between the ages of 43 and 56, were charged and placed in preventive arrest, the paris prosecutor's office said.
More gas stations, possible network targets
Investigators believe that the Vitry-Sur-Seine gas station was not the only target. According to the prosecutor, the group was mobile and installs shimmer devices, especially on the terminals at gasoline pumps, to collect real -time banking data, later used for cash withdrawals, especially in Spain.
For the time being, the exact number of the victims and the total extent of the fraud is not known, but the authorities evaluate the damage.
Frauds with Shimmer devices, declining
According to the payment security observer, in 2023 Shimming type fraud caused estimated losses at about 36,000 euros in France, decreasing from the 50,000 euros registered in 2022. The investigation continues.
