Greg's Corner

Record high gas prices bring out the scammers

By Greg Collier

Scammers probably pay attention to the news more than most. If there’s a crisis they can take advantage of, they will. In this case, it’s the prices at the pump that we’ve all been having to deal with. Leave it to the scammers to make matters worse for people who are just trying to commute to work, take their kids to school, or both. So, here are three scams that could make paying at the pump even more expensive.

The first gas scam we need to discuss are the promise of gas cards that are spreading on social media. The what this scam works is the scammers will pose as a well-known gas station brand. They’ll then reach out to people on social media to their victims they just won a $500 gas card. The victim will then be instructed to give their payment information because there is a small payment like $1.95 for shipping. Once the scammers have a victim’s payment information, they’ve been charging close to $90 a piece to each victim. Remember, you can’t win anything if you’ve never entered a giveaway.

The second scam takes the form of a text message scam. In the state of New York, the Department of Motor Vehicles is warning drivers there about a scam that has become prevalent in the Empire State. Scammers have been sending out text messages posing as the DMV, promising recipients a $1500 rebate due to high gas prices. The text contains a link that scammers are hoping you’ll click on. The link takes you to a website that is a clone of the DMV’s website, where you’re asked to enter your personal information. If you were to surrender your personal information, it would open you up to identity theft.

Currently, no state is offering any kind of gas relief outside of a handful of states that have temporarily repealed gas taxes.

Lastly, we’re going to talk about a gas pump scam that happens even when gas prices are reasonable. If you pay at the pump with a credit or debit card, you have to be careful of card skimmers that scammers have placed inside of the gas pump’s card scanner. It used to be you could just tug on the pump’s card slot and the skimmer would dislodge. Now, there are skimmers small enough to fit inside the card scanning mechanism. To avoid having your card skimmed, look for any evidence of tampering, like scraped paint, exposed wires, or some kind of tape or sticker. The best way to avoid skimmers is to pay inside the gas station.