I've done some posts on the tampering of PED's (HomeATM's PED is tamper-proof) and the fact that some people are stealing and replacing PIN Pads with fake ones.  FYI, to see those posts, you can use the HomeATM Blog Search Bar,   It is located on the right sidebar of this blog. 

Were you to search: tampering,  you would get the results below:

Terminal Disease Boosts Fraud

Dec 17, 2008

Getting the PAN (personal account number) and PIN is so easy (with tampered devices) it's like stealing candy from a baby.However, in these times, it's not the "sweet tooth" that's behind the stealing...it's the Bluetooth. ...

Ouch! Card Swiping Devices Now Being Doctored During Manufacturing

Oct 12, 2008

It's bad enough when point of sale (POS) devices are tampered with at the physical retail location, but now it's getting a little ridiculous. Now... there's reports that the some POS devices are being doctored (by ...

Montreal Men Arrested in London Card Scam

Dec 02, 2008

police said a local business discovered the store's debit pad had been tampered with and called police. The next day, police arrested two suspects at the Greyhound Bus terminal on York Street as dozens of people and media waited for ...

Skim Through this Card Skimming Article ~ PIN Debit Payments Blog

Jan 05, 2009

They've been tampered with, they've had skimmers attached to them, or they've been replaced with clones and then taken back filled with credit/debit card numbers. I am adamant in my beliefs that the safest transaction is ...

Here's the story from the Beacon Herald stating that police in the Stratford area have "PINpointed" where the fake equipment was installed:

Source of debit scam tracked down

Business innocent victim, not being named
Posted By Laura Cudworth, Staff Reporter

The debit scam that emptied thousands of dollars from bank accounts around the city was located at one local business. Stratford police and banking security officers have pinpointed where the fake equipment was installed but won’t name the business.

“The business is a lot of times the victim of this type of fraud. So far in our investigation, they’re innocent parties. We have no reason to believe the owner had anything to do with this at this time,” Insp. Sam Theocharis said Wednesday. However, if the police make an arrest the name of the suspect will be released, he said.

He noted business owners are rarely involved because it’s easy to track down where the fraud originated using pin pads that were modified.  Over the past several months, groups of individuals have been going into businesses, not just in Stratford, distracting employees and stealing pin pads. It takes two of the units to make one modified pin pad.

Most businesses leave PIN pads right out on the counter, so crooks have easy access. “Wherever you go you see PIN pads on the counter,” Insp. Theocharis noted. 

Dear Prudence:

When you hear it put  that way, doesn't it  kind of make you feel it may be more,  well... prudent to stay at home, save gas, maybe some sales tax, make sure you get the best deal,  and use your "very own...very secure (E2EE) personal card swiper with it very own tamperproof PIN Pad?

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