State requiring gas station owners to increase security against skimmers

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The state is cracking down on thieves who want to take your money and your identity at the gas pump.

On Saturday, a new law will take effect that will not only increase penalties for those caught with forged credit-card information but will require gas stations to better protect customers.

“I think it's a great idea. You don't want to be using the pumps and all of a sudden your information gets out there into the public,” Allen Warkentine said.

The Department of Agriculture, which is tasked with inspecting Florida’s gas pumps, said in 2015 it found and removed more than 150 skimmers at gas stations.

The state estimates that an average of $1,000 is stolen from each victim.

“I used to work for an ATM company. That ATM company had to go through all of this and they upgraded the ATMs and it's a common problem,” Warkentine said.

The new law will also spell out one of several security measures gas station owners will have to choose from in order to prevent theft. For example, they can use the system that encrypts the customer’s card information at self-service pumps. Or they can apply a pressure-sensitive security tape over the panel to make it difficult to tamper with.

Customers like Warkentine said it should be a shared responsibility.

“The gas pump operators obviously need to make sure their customers are secure but the credit card companies also should work with the gas stations as well to help defray some of those costs,” Warkentine said.

Under the new law, if a gas station doesn’t comply, it will get a written notice and then five days to correct it. If a station is tagged repeatedly, the owners could be forced to shut down that pump.

Cox Media Group