Liz woke up one morning to a voicemail on her phone.
The call was from her bank, USAA, notifying her that her account had suspicious charges on it and was flagged for fraud.
She checked her statements and discovered two fraudulent purchases, each for more than $100 at a gas station in Tampa.
But Liz hadn't been in Tampa. She was asleep in her Gainesville residence when the charges were made.
Liz, who requested her last name not be used, is just one of the unknown number of Gainesville residents who had their credit card information saved onto a gas-pump skimmer and downloaded via Bluetooth by identity bandits.
The 25-year-old said she frequently bought gas from the Kangaroo station at 3424 SW Williston Road, where two skimmers were found on the weekend of July 24.
Before the charges appeared, the last purchase made with her card was gas from that station, she said.
She responded by calling the bank and discussing the problem with USAA's fraud department. After about a week, she was able to recover her money.
Bob Page, Alachua County president for Alarion Bank, said that under Federal Regulation E, consumers who have been victimized only need to pay up to $50. Of course, that depends on whether or not the bank deems the claim legitimate.
The skimmers haven't just been affecting consumers, but local businesses as well.
Patrick Daniel, co-owner of Go Video, a small video rental shop located inside the Chevron at 5221 NW 43rd St., said that he has been losing business because people are refusing to leave their credit card information with him.
Go Video rents videos to customers by the day. To charge its customers, Go Video must keep credit card information on file in order to prevent people from absconding with its movies.
To accommodate worried customers, Daniel has had to take cash deposits on his rentals.
"I couldn't explain to them that the skimmers, they get you at the pumps," he said.
Daniel also said that he has noticed a major increase in people who walk inside to pay.
Though she does not buy gas at the Chevron where Go Video is located, Liz is included in the multitude of people who now pay inside with cash.
"I've gotten yelled at [by my husband Dustin] for not paying inside," she said. "If I just swipe at the gas pump, I get talked to."
