Skimming Device Discovered On Falls Church ATM: Police

FALLS CHURCH, VA—Falls Church Police say a skimming device was found an ATM in the city.

The skimming device had been installed at NASA Federal Credit Union (1130 West Broad Street) between Aug. 17 and Aug. 29. There are no leads on suspects.

Skimming devices are attached to machines that have card readers. The device collects financial information, including PIN numbers, when an individual slides a card through the reader.

Here are some tips from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) on how to protect your account information from card skimmers:

• Do not use an ATM or a credit or debit card reader if anything looks suspicious, such as loose or extra parts. Alert the machine owner or police immediately.
• Avoid ATMs in remote places, especially if the area is not well lit or not visible to security cameras.
• Go elsewhere if you see a sign directing you to only one of multiple ATMs in a location. It could be the machine that was tampered with by a crook.
• Cover the keypad when typing your PIN number at an ATM or checkout area.
• Regularly check your bank and credit card accounts for unauthorized transactions, even small transactions.

Here are other incidents reported in Falls Church over the last week:

Burglary, 501 Roosevelt Blvd (Oakwood Apartments), between 2:00 PM, Aug 27 and
9:00 AM, Aug 28, unknown suspect(s) broke into a maintenance trailer and removed a
leaf blower. Investigation continues.

Check Fraud, 7124 Leesburg Pike (GMHS), Aug 28, 11:15 AM, unauthorized
withdrawals from a checking account were discovered. Investigation continues.

Auto Theft, 1051 E Broad St (Koons Ford), between 9:00 AM, Aug 24 and 9:00AM Aug
25, unknown suspect(s) removed a white 2018 Toyota Highlander from the sales lot.
Investigation continues.

Auto Theft by Bailee, 156 Hillwood Ave (Enterprise Rent-a-Car), between Aug 1 and
Aug 31, a 2016 silver Nissan Sentra was rented and not returned. Investigation continues.

Larceny From Vehicle, 1200 blk Ellison St, Sept 1, 10:26 AM, unknown suspect
removed the spare tire and wheel key from a pickup truck.

Vandalism to Vehicle, 500 blk S Spring St, between 7:00 PM Sept 1 and 12:55 AM

Sept 2, unknown suspect(s) slashed a tire on a parked vehicle. Investigation continues.

To report any information, call Falls Church Police at 703-241-5050.

Image via ImYanis/Shutterstock