I've found this in a forum about theft in the Dominican Republic. 04-04-2014, 11:56 AM #1 Scrabblebiker Regular Join Date Mar 2014 Posts 67 Post Thanks / Like ATM Card Has Been Skimmed Hi all. I'm not sure this is the right place for this post, but here we go. For those of you who may have read my trip report you'll know that I was having a hard time getting cash during my trip. It turns out that my ATM card had been skimmed. My Credit Union blocked my account as soon as they knew. Luckily, no cash was missing from my account. The card could have been skimmed anywhere, including back home. But the two ATM's I used in the DR before the card stopped functioning were Banco BHD and Scotiabank, both in Cabarete. Due to ongoing police investigations, the credit union will not divulge the exact location of the skimming but better safe than sorry. ...Michelle Reply With Quote Post Thanks / Like - 2 Likes, 0 Dislikes Sosua Sonny, s1mpleton liked this post 04-04-2014, 12:06 PM #2 cobraboy Platinum Join Date Jul 2004 Posts 20,430 Post Thanks / Like It's advised that credit & debit cards be unused as much as possible, especially in the tourist areas. I've had credit & debit cards compromised 8 times in 6 years. DR1 Anarchist & Cholesterol Pimp "The older he gets, the better he was." Reply With Quote Post Thanks / Like - 1 Likes, 0 Dislikes Criss Colon liked this post 04-04-2014, 12:20 PM #3 Scrabblebiker Regular Join Date Mar 2014 Posts 67 Post Thanks / Like I'm wondering if it's safe to walk into a bank and get a cash advance with one's passport. At least they won't have the PIN. For now, what I'm doing is using credit cards with very low credit limits. I also make sure to create sub accounts at my credit union which aren't linked to the ATM accessible account. These accounts contain the bulk of my cash and I transfer just what I need shortly before making a withdrawal. I miss the old days where all you had to worry about was replacing lost traveler's cheques. Originally Posted by cobraboy It's advised that credit & debit cards be unused as much as possible, especially in the tourist areas. I've had credit & debit cards compromised 8 times in 6 years. Reply With Quote 04-04-2014, 12:24 PM #4 frank12 Silver Join Date Sep 2011 Posts 4,843 Post Thanks / Like That's terrible. All i can say is that in the two or three times that someone has tried to clone my credit card, the thieves have actually felt sorry for my lack of funds and terrible credit history, and tried to contact me in order to solicit me for help in getting Fannie Mae off of their back. Apparently, when they changed my address and phone number, so many credit agencies started flooding them with phone calls and inquiries, that they actually begged me to change my address back to get the credit agencies off their back. True story. Frank Reply With Quote Post Thanks / Like - 8 Likes, 0 Dislikes mountainannie, sosuamatt, jinty05, nigrarosa, gibbs and 3 others liked this post 04-04-2014, 12:33 PM #5 cobraboy Platinum Join Date Jul 2004 Posts 20,430 Post Thanks / Like Originally Posted by Scrabblebiker I'm wondering if it's safe to walk into a bank and get a cash advance with one's passport. At least they won't have the PIN. I doubt it's possible, but it IS safer to go into the bank and have them do a manual ATM transfer. There are numerous ways to run ATM scams, and if a scam is possible, Dominicans will become the masters... Sorry about your trouble. DR1 Anarchist & Cholesterol Pimp "The older he gets, the better he was." Reply With Quote Post Thanks / Like - 1 Likes, 0 Dislikes Criss Colon liked this post 04-04-2014, 12:49 PM #6 Scrabblebiker Regular Join Date Mar 2014 Posts 67 Post Thanks / Like Originally Posted by cobraboy I doubt it's possible, but it IS safer to go into the bank and have them do a manual ATM transfer. There are numerous ways to run ATM scams, and if a scam is possible, Dominicans will become the masters... Sorry about your trouble. It is possible to get a "manual" cash advance on a credit card with a passport by going to a teller inside many banks. That's how I finally got some cash in Azua at a Banco BHD branch. It's also the way I've traditionally gotten cash for most of my other travels in Cuba, Mexico and Central America. Just wondering if it's any safer since no ATM PIN is being divulged. Reply With Quote 04-04-2014, 12:56 PM #7 Xavier_Onassis Silver Join Date Aug 2006 Posts 2,590 Post Thanks / Like They really need to put a chip in ATM, Credit and debit cards. Are they reading the card with some electronic gizmo while it is still in your pocket or purse? If so, would wrapping it in aluminum foil help? I once filled my car at a Sunoco Station. I left the card with the guy at the register, filled it up then came back, signed the receipt, took my card and left. My statement read TWO purchased of 12 gallons of Diesel on the same day. I wrote the credit card company, deducted the second charge from the payment and returned it by mail. I heard no more about it, and didnlt use the card for over a month. The next bill was for $0.00. I heard nothing from the CC Company.
