This particular type of fraud targets shop owners and police say it has been happening in Sydney.
The criminals go to a retail shop dressed as electrical contractors and cut their phone lines. They then go into the shop as customers and buy products using a stolen credit card.
Because the phone lines have been cut the store’s staff can’t verify the card to process the transaction. So they either have to trust that the card is legitimate and process the order on paper, or turn away customers.
If you work for a retail store you should be aware of this fraud tactic. There may also be things you can do to protect access to your store’s phone lines, and it may be possible to organise credit card processing facilities that use a mobile network as a backup.
We use a Tyro machine at work which sends the transactions through the internet instead of through a phone dialup connection through to the bank. Saves money and is much quicker than the old machine. Good luck to these guys trying their trick on us!
That said, who lets an electrician onto their premises uninvited??