QUAD CITIES, Iowa–Members of two credit unions in different parts of the country were reporting fraudulent card activity over Labor Day weekend, with card skimmers strong suspects in both cases. One CU opened on Labor Day to help resolve the issue.
IH Mississippi Valley Credit Union said in a statement, “Today our fraud monitoring system alerted us to potential fraudulent activity over the holiday weekend at several area ATMs. Some IHMVCU members and customers of several financial intuitions were affected.”
One of the CU’s members, Charlotte Biage, told KWQC more than $700 had been taken from a joint account she has with her husband. “They took from us. They took hard-earned money that we worked for,” she told the news outlet.
Members were unable to use debit and credit cards on Sunday and Monday of Labor Day weekend due to the security issue.
Biage told KWQC that on Tuesday morning there was a long line at IHMVCU, and that many of the members were in line seeking to get their money back.
In its statement, IHMVCU said, “We’re still gathering information on where it originated and will be working with local law enforcement to catch the fraudsters and assist our members.”
Fraud in New York
Meanwhile, in Sidney, N.Y., the scenario is much the same with hundreds of Sidney Federal Credit Union members reporting fraudulent charges appeared on their accounts over Labor Day weekend, according to WBNG.
The charges stem from a single ATM at the SFCU branch in Walton, N.Y. According to the credit union, a skimming device was placed inside the machine, WBNG reported.
“We looked at everybody’s accounts, for if they had any fraudulent activity. We shut down the old ATM card, and issued a new one,” Jim Reynolds, President and CEO of Sidney Federal Credit Union, told the news outlet.
The Walton branch saw members flowing in and out, all looking to get new debit cards, WBNG reported.
According to the credit union, most of the charges are coming from New York City. Some members, however, also saw out-of-state charges.
CU Opens on Labor Day
Sidney FCU opened on Labor Day to help resolve the issue.
“We’re working with all our providers for our ATM, our card processor, looking at transactions outside the normal scope, and denying transactions that are a little suspicious,” Reynolds told WBNG.
SFCU reported there is also a possibility of fraudulent charges at its Oneonta, N.Y. branch.