New Jersey warns against using cards at gas stations

Jack McLoone | Asbury Park Press

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If your usual gas transaction is "fill it up, regular, credit," you might need to start switching up your payment method, the New Jersey Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Cell warns in a release.

Reports of card data theft are cropping up at gas stations across North America, due in part to some gas stations still not having chip-reading technology, according to NJCCIC. The magnetic stripe on your card is much less secure than the chip.

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"Cyber-criminals are installing POS malware on fuel dispenser merchants’ networks in order to steal unencrypted payment card data," NJCCIC said. "Many gas station pumps are still not fitted to accept chip card transactions and can only read payment data from the card’s magnetic stripe. The data from the stripe is sent unencrypted (readable) to the gas station’s network where it can be stolen."

Cyber-criminals also sometimes install physical devices at gas stations to steal this data, the release says.

This release comes on the heels of Wawa being affected by a massive data breach resulting in numerous lawsuits. Payments at gas pumps were part of the impacted transactions.

More on Wawa: South Jersey woman sues Wawa over massive data breach

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According to the release, gas stations that do not transition to chip-readers by October 2020 will become liable for all payment fraud thereafter.

While data can be stolen from both credit and debit cards, NJCCIC recommends using the former over the latter to "reduce the impact of payment card fraud" if you are going to use a card. Of course, cash would eliminate this possibility.

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Jack McLoone is technically a digital producer, but also writes from time to time about anything and everything. A recent graduate of Fordham University, he is new here, so please be nice. Contact him at jmcloone@gannett.com or @jfmclooney on Twitter.