Harvard University Employee Arrested For Theft From The University

[From article]
A Harvard employee for 17 years, Shawn Bunn, 44, allegedly used Harvard’s money to make hundreds of personal purchases, which he covered up by submitting false receipts to the University, according to the office of Middlesex County District Attorney Marian T. Ryan. Bunn, who was given a University credit card to make purchases for a computer lab, apparently stole money from Harvard over the course of four years.
“This is a breach of trust by a school employee,” Ryan said. “Over a period of four years the defendant is alleged to have made personal purchases in excess of $80,000 therefore diverting resources from the students and faculty of Harvard University.”
[. . .]
Harvard University Police acquired a search warrant on Bunn’s home and office, where they apparently found many of the items Bunn billed to Harvard but allegedly stole for personal use, including a table saw, Lego sets, and a garbage disposal.

http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2015/9/24/employee-allegedly-steals-thousands/

Employee Allegedly Steals More than $80,000 from Harvard
By MARIEL A. KLEIN ,
Harvard CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
September 23, 2015

Cambridge Police Warn About ATM Skimmers

[From alert]
The Cambridge Police Department reminds ATM users to be aware of skimming devices at area ATMs. These skimming devices are being used as part of an ongoing scheme by thieves to steal account information from customers and defraud banks. In recent weeks, skimming devices have been discovered in the Greater Boston area, including Cambridge.
Special attention is being placed on ATMs by Cambridge Police patrol officers, particularly during the hours of bank closures. The Cambridge Police and its Investigations Unit are working with local banks and educating regional and branch managers about these schemes, which are not isolated to Cambridge.
[. . .]
An ATM skimmer is an illegal activity that involves the installation of a device generally while a branch is closed, usually undetectable by ATM users, that secretly records bank account data when the user inserts an ATM card into the machine or an ATM door card reader. Criminals can then encode the stolen data onto a blank card and use it to steal from the customer’s bank account.
The Cambridge Police advises local citizens to use precaution and suggests following these tips to help you avoid falling victim to skimmers:
- Inspect ATMs, gas pumps or credit card readers before using them. Be suspicious if you see anything loose, crooked, damaged or if you notice scratches or tape residue.
- When entering your PIN, block the keypad with your other hand to prevent possible hidden cameras from recording your number.
- If possible, use an ATM at an inside location.
- Be careful of ATMs in tourist areas, as they tend to be popular targets of skimmers.
- If your ATM card is not returned after a transaction or after hitting cancel, immediately contact the financial institution that issued the card.

http://cambridge.wickedlocal.com/article/20150714/NEWS/150718647

Cambridge Police warn of ATM skimming schemes
Posted Jul. 14, 2015 at 9:43 AM
CAMBRIDGE The following is a citizen advisory sent out by the Cambridge Police Department.

Massive Food Stamp (EBT) Fraud Investigation In Alabama

[From article]
The massive probe, dubbed Operation T-bone, targeted those they say have been cheating the food stamp system to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars and sending at least some of the profits via wire transfer to Yemen.
The District Attorney's Office, the FBI, the Gardendale Police Department, the USDA, the Alabama Department of Human Resources  and the Secret Service all worked together on the investigation. Birmingham police, the U.S. Marshals, the Internal Revenue Service, Homeland Security Investigations, Walmart Global Operations, Hoover police, Pelham police, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office SWAT team and the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency helped with today's raid in a specially-formed task force.
[. . .]
They were arrested on charges including public assistance fraud, fraudulent use of a credit card and theft of property, which are felonies. All of those arrested are U.S. citizens, Falls said.

http://www.al.com/news/birmingham/index.ssf/2015/06/fraud_ring_that_turned_ebt_car.html

Corner stores turned EBT cards into cash for drugs, wired profit to Yemen, authorities say
By Carol Robinson | crobinson (at) al.com
on June 03, 2015 at 2:36 PM, updated June 03, 2015 at 10:05 PM

Woman NYPD Officer Busted For Buying Diamond Ring Using Dead Man's Credit Card

[From article]

An NYPD officer who found the body of a Manhattan man used the victim’s credit card number to buy herself a pricey diamond ring, authorities said Tuesday.
Officer Ymmacula Pierre, 30, was charged with possession of stolen property, ID theft, attempted grand larceny and official misconduct for allegedly going to a jewelry store’s website and using the dead man’s Citibank MasterCard number to buy bling valued at more than $3,200.
Days before the purchase, on July 14, 2014, Pierre and her partner responded to a call from a relative worried that 65-year-old architect Kenneth Sanden, who had several health problems, had not shown up for work.
Arriving at Sanden’s East 14th Street apartment, they found him dead, according to court records.
Pierre vouchered some of Sanden’s possessions, including the credit card, officials said. Two days later, the number was used to make an unauthorized online purchase of a diamond ring from Zales.com for $3,282.58. Sanden’s niece was notified of possible credit-card fraud and alerted the vendor before the ring was delivered.

http://nypost.com/2015/06/02/cop-busted-for-buying-diamond-ring-with-dead-mans-credit-card/

Cop busted for buying diamond ring with dead man’s credit card
By Antonio Antenucci and Leonard Greene
New York Post
June 2, 2015 | 8:01pm

Barnes And Nobles Customers' Credit Card Pins Stolen

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/business/barnes_noble_pin_pad_tampering_was_2LLUWY8ydRvL1mmP27us0K

Barnes & Noble calls PIN pad tampering 'sophisticated' crime
From ASSOCIATED PRESS
New York Post
Last Updated: 11:22 AM, October 24, 2012
Posted: 9:42 AM, October 24, 2012

New York Judge Dismisses Credit Company Claims, Favors Debtors

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/brooklyn/better_off_debtor_NN6zPgVSlXtAsJyOwUkcXM

Better off debtor
Credit judge’s free rides
By BRAD HAMILTON and GREGORY BRESIGER
New York Post
Last Updated: 4:16 AM, August 26, 2012
Posted: 12:09 AM, August 26, 2012

Sweden To Go Cashless

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57399610/sweden-moving-towards-cashless-economy/

March 18, 2012 5:09 PM
CBS News
Sweden moving towards cashless economy
AP

Credit Card Thefts

New way of STEALING...
Quite interesting.This is a new one. People sure stay busy trying to cheat us, don't they?

SCENE 1. A man went to the local gym and placed his belongings in the locker. After the workout and a shower, he came out, saw the locker open, and thought to himself, 'Funny, I thought I locked the locker...Hmm, 'He dressed and just flipped the wallet to make sure all was in order. Everything looked okay - all cards were in place. A few weeks later his credit card bill came - a whopping bill of $14,000! He called the credit card company and started yelling at them, saying that he did not make the transactions. Customer care personnel verified that there was no mistake in the system and asked if his card had been stolen... 'No,' he said, but then took out his wallet, pulled out the credit card, and yep - you guessed it - a switch had been made. An expired similar credit card from the same bank was in the wallet. The thief broke into his locker at the gym and switched cards.
Verdict: The credit card issuer said since he did not report the card missing earlier, he would have to pay the amount owed to them. How much did he have to pay for items he did not buy? $9,000! Why were there no calls made to verify the amount swiped? Small amounts rarely trigger a 'warning bell' with some credit card companies. It just so happens that all the small amounts added up to big one!
============================

SCENE 2. A man at a local restaurant paid for his meal with his credit card. The bill for the meal came, he signed it and the waitress folded the receipt and passed the credit card along. Usually, he would just take it and place it in his wallet or pocket. Funny enough, though, he actually took a look at the card and, lo and behold, it was the expired card of another person. He called the waitress and she looked perplexed. She took it back, apologized, and hurried back to the counter under the watchful eye of the man. All the waitress did while walking to the counter was wave the wrong expired card to the counter cashier, and the counter cashier immediately looked down and took out the real card. No exchange of words --- nothing! She took it and came back to the man with an apology. Verdict: Make sure the credit cards in your wallet are yours. Check the name on the card every time you sign for something and/or the card is taken away for even a short period of time. Many people just take back the credit card without even looking at it, 'assuming' that it has to be theirs. FOR YOUR OWN SAKE, DEVELOP THE HABIT OF CHECKING YOUR CREDIT CARD EACH TIME IT IS RETURNED TO YOU AFTER A TRANSACTION! ==========================

SCENE 3: A man went into a pizza restaurant to pick up an order he had called in. He paid by using his Visa Check Card which, is linked directly to his checking account. The young man behind the counter took his card, swiped it, then laid it on the counter as he waited for the approval, which is standard procedure. While the clerk waited, he picked up his cell phone and started dialing. The customer noticed the phone because it is the same model he has. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Then the customer heard a click that sounded like his phone sounds when he takes a picture. The clerk gave the customer back his card but kept the phone in his hand as if he was still pressing buttons. Meanwhile, the customer is thinking: "I wonder what he is taking a picture of?" oblivious to what was really going on. It then dawned on him: the only thing there was his credit card, so now he's paying close attention to what the clerk is doing. He set his phone on the counter, leaving it open. About five seconds later, the customer heard the chime that tells you that the picture has been saved. Now he's standing there struggling with the fact that this boy just took a picture of his credit card. Yes, he played it off well, because had they not had the same kind of phone, he probably would never have known what happened. the customer immediately cancelled that card as he was walking out of the pizza parlor.

Be aware of your surroundings at all times. Whenever you are using your credit card take caution and don't be careless. Notice who is standing near you and what they are doing when you use your card. Be aware of phones, because many have a camera phone these days.

JUST BE AWARE! Never let your card out of your sight. Check and check again!

Zappos' Client Credit Info Hacked

Why is it necessary for any retailer to keep the credit card number of any customer? Are online customers so lazy they cannot enter their card number each time they purchase an item? It is bad enough they keep the email addresses, which only result in spam.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/national/zappos_cyber_attack_pWsrU60crm8SGHJWYGuP7K

Zappos cyber attack
ID info hacked
By DAVID K. LI
New York Post
Last Updated: 3:04 AM, January 17, 2012
Posted: 1:00 AM, January 17, 2012

Fraud Ring Busted


http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/brooklyn/fraud_bonanza_0xoG9fOfMpDqARzrTiwkQP

10G a day in credit fraud, insure scams: DA
By ALEX GINSBERG
New York Post
Last Updated: 12:19 PM, October 8, 2009
Posted: 3:34 AM, October 8, 2009

Harvard Campus Police Allegedly Misuse Credit Cards

http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=527340

HUPD Investigated for Alleged Misuse of Gas, Vehicles
Published On Friday, March 27, 2009 2:08 PM
By MARIANNA N TISHCHENKO
Harvard Crimson Staff Writer