Cambridge Police Warn of Local ATM Skimming Scheme

The Cambridge Police Department warned locals about an ongoing ATM skimming scheme affecting the city.

According to an email sent to residents last Tuesday, a skimming device—hardware that reads and stores a person’s credit or debit card information at an ATM—was recently discovered attached to a machine at a local convenience store in Cambridge. CPD’s investigations unit is currently in the process of “actively following up on the incident,” according to email, and has placed patrols in the area to check ATMs in locations frequently affected by skimming.

“During this busy travel season, the Cambridge Police Department would like to remind ATM users to be aware of skimming devices at area ATMs,” the email, sent to a local listserv that services Cambridge residents, read. “These skimming devices are being used as part of an ongoing scheme by thieves to steal account information from customers and to defraud banks.”

CPD spokesperson Jeremy Warnick wrote that major commercial areas such as Harvard and Central squares are often the target for credit fraud schemes, though he noted that Harvard Square was “relatively quiet” throughout 2015, with 16 incidents reported to the police department over the course of the year.

In comparison, 37 different accounts of ATM skimming were reported in East Cambridge in 2015, comprising a little under a quarter of the total incidents of ATM and credit card fraud reported to CPD in last year.

CPD urged residents to report any ATM machines that look as if they have been tampered with to the police department.

—Staff writer Brandon J. Dixon can be reached at brandon.dixon@thecrimson.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrandonJoDixon.