Our lives are complicated enough without having to deal with the unexpected misery and aggravation of identity theft. That’s why Democratic City Council candidate Chaim Deutsch is calling for tougher penalties for bank card skimming and identity theft.

“With 22 years of involvement in law enforcement issues, I thought that I was well aware of bank card skimming tricks,” said Chaim Deutsch, Democratic candidate for the 48th District City Council seat. “I never thought that I would fall prey to one of these scams. But it recently happened to me and unfortunately, it’s a real threat and an everyday occurrence. Don’t think that you are immune to scams, no matter how savvy and alert you may be.”

The scam involves a device that is placed over or in an ATM’s card slot. The device reads your card number and sends the information to the thief. Deutsch explained that the methods that bank card skimmers use to steal your credit or ATM bank card information are becoming more sophisticated.

“People may not notice when a skimming device is placed over the card reader slot at an ATM machine. The device may be so tiny that it can be placed inside of the slot where it cannot be seen or over the existing card slot. Sometimes a tiny camera is also placed in a pamphlet holder near the ATM machine. The camera or skimmer then records your PIN number as you type it in,” said Deutsch.

The card holder has no idea that he or she has been victimized until a check bounces or they see unauthorized activity on their bank or credit card statement.

According to recent statistics, almost 80% of Americans have an ATM card and 60% of those people use it at least eight times a month. The Federal Trade Commission estimates that nine million Americans a year are the victims of identity theft. Many of these cases involve bank or credit card skimming.

“A victim of identity theft has to spend a great deal of time and effort to get their lives back on track. ATM and credit cards need to be replaced. Numerous phone calls have to be made. You can’t make purchases or pay bills, because money is missing from your account and it may take several days for the bank to investigate the matter and issue a new card,” said Deutsch. “I am calling on our federal legislators to enact stricter penalties for those who are convicted of bank or credit card skimming and identity theft so that we may send a strong message to these scam artists that there are serious consequences for these crimes. In addition, banks must be held responsible for providing better security at their ATM facilities. The public deserves better protection from these scams. I urge you to speak with your bank about their security procedures on bank skimming and about having an efficient and effective security camera system.”

Chaim Deutsch realized that his account had been sabotaged only when his bank alerted him. Later that week, he received calls from several community residents who had been victimized by the same scam.

Chaim Deutsch is a proud father and grandfather and well known community activist. He is running for the 48th District City Council seat, which includes Brighton Beach, Manhattan Beach, Sheepshead Bay, Homecrest and Midwood.

(Press Release)