It is unknown whether a rash of reports regarding debit and credit card fraud in Boothbay Harbor is connected to a similar situation affecting card customers statewide, but there’s no doubt that consumers should check their accounts for the possibility of illicit activity.
The Boothbay Harbor Police Dept. first issued an alert through their Facebook web page on February 14 advising that “multiple reports of thefts from local debit card accounts” had been received and an investigation was ongoing. As additional reports came in, thefts from credit card accounts were also reported, according to Boothbay Harbor Police Chief Robert Hasch.
“We’ve had 8 or 9 reports come in and we are expecting more as we put the word out,” Chief Hasch said. There are several different local banks affected by the situation, with fraudulent card use occurring in far away places like New York City, Georgia and Italy.
Typically, criminals obtain cardholder information using a variety of methods and then sell that information on the Internet, which explains the far ranging locations for theft, Chief Hasch explained. Video images of at least one suspect in New York City have been obtained by authorities, and will be forwarded to the Boothbay Harbor Police Dept, according to Chief Hasch.
The investigation is still underway as to how information from the Boothbay Harbor cardholders was spirited away by criminals.
The police departments in Waldoboro and Damariscotta reported that there was no discernible increase in reports of credit or debit card fraud, as did the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office. However, a much larger investigation has been launched by authorities regarding a data breach that is affecting credit and debit accounts statewide.
That security breach is affecting “thousands of consumers” according to Jon Paradise, Governmental and Public Affairs Manager for the Maine Credit Union League (MCUL).
“Credit unions have discovered a security breach impacting consumers that, from all reports, is impacting people who made purchases at Day’s Jewelers in November and December 2010,” Paradise announced on February 15.
“In the past few days, a number of those consumers have reported seeing activity on their cards that were not purchases they made,” according to Paradise.
While no connection has been established between the statewide security breach and the fraud reports in Boothbay Harbor, the timing for both events is essentially the same, with first reports being received from victims several days preceding the MCUL announcement. The statewide issue and the Boothbay Harbor reports are also affecting both credit and debit cards, according to the MCUL and the Boothbay Harbor Police.
Authorities urge residents keep an eye on their credit and debit accounts and report any suspicious activity to both their bank and local law enforcement as soon as observed.