Murphy's Gas
 

Thought I should share some info I just learned. My Visa was compromised and I got a call this morning. Apparently it was used for gas in Miami and Helio(?). When I was in Beall's and Tj Max today, told the cashier about it and was told at both places that they knew someone who also had their Visas used in Miami and Helio. In fact the second gal said that her sister had used Murphy's Gas on 466 and has since heard that others who have been there also had their cards compromised and used for gas in Miami and Helio. I don't know if this is coincidental or a pattern but I thought I should let others know so they can be on the look out. I called the bank so they are now on the lookout for a pattern.

Don't know what will become of it,but I wont be going there again. Once bitten, twice shy.

LW888

What if the crooks move on to the next station that you will use? Maybe they are skimmers.
Or do you think it was someone working at Murphy's? Did you talk to anyone at Murphy's?
How about the Sheriff?

it might have been a thing on the visa machine. I used it at the pump so it wasn't an attendant. Like I said, it might have been a coincidence, but when there were others who used Murphy's and their visa got compromised it starts to look funny.

I know it could happen any where and I know to check for odd visa machines. I figure it is a message for me to be more aware and ..... maybe to use my visa less LOL!

LW888

It would be wise to talk to Murphy's to alert them. If you think there are other people with coincidental issues you should alert the Sheriffs office. This website is not a whole lot of help to track down a potential theft ring.

Is Murphy's the Shell station on 466 near Southern Trace????

No, it's farther west across from Wal-Mart and McDonalds.

i contacted the bank. I figured that their cc department would contact whomever they neededto as they are the ones who are picking up the tab for the charges.

LW888

Debit or credit
 

Did you use a debit or credit card?

Just curious

More than likely it is a skimmer attached to machine and has nothing to do with Murphy Gas. Slamming the company when they may not even be aware of this, is not the thing to do.
Seems to be a lot of that on here.

If you are sure beyond doubt, contact the gas station so they can check the rest of the pumps.

How can you be sure it was even at that station. Just went through a compromised card and they could not tell me where the number was obtained from only where it had been used.

I used a credit card. I said from th beginning that it might all be a coincidence. I just found it strange that others had used tthe gas station and then had compromised cards that were used in Miami and Helio. The bbank could not tell me where the number was obtained, but they told me where it was used.

LW888

Light - thank you for sharing this information. The minute I read your post, which was worded very carefully not to place blame, I thought boy is she going to get slammed. You did a public service and thank you - it's good to alert your neighbors when there is a problem of this nature so we can all be more aware.

Thanks gomoho. I knew that there would be some who would not have posted. I just felt that it was worth putting the info out and reaching those who would want to know I figure it never hurts to inform, especially when I heard about others who had the same experience. I'll let the banks do their job. They certainly are better set up than I and know what to look for.

In the meanwhile I will be more diligent about covering when I use my PIN and looking for skimmers. The odd thing is that was the only stop that was out of the ordinary for me. I usually use the Shell stations, but the price at Murphy's caught my eye. It was about 10 cents or more less than Shell at that time and the place was buzzing. That is another reason why I found the matching stories curious.

LW888

Did you ever call the sheriff?

Yes I called and they are going to check the pumps.

LW 888

I have now noticed several threads here where people think that their major credit cards have been compromised at various gas stations. For years my wife and I have bought all of our gas on one of two gas credit cards..Shell & BP. When we buy gas we buy it on one of those two cards, and then pay off the cards at the end of the month. If there's a skimmer on the pump then they are not going to get much to begin with because the limits are low and you can't buy a 60 inch flat screen at Best Buy with a BP card. If we happen to be in a place where there are no Shell or BP stations then we pay cash in an emergency.

My husband mentioned that today and I am going to get a Shell card. Just wish that I could use it in Canada too. Will have to check on it again but the last time I checked it was just for th US. Good strategy for avoiding compromising cards.

LW888

One thing I noticed on Friday when we had lunch at Chili's..they now have these little machines at the table which allows you to swipe your own card and pay your own bill right at the table without the card ever leaving your hands. Nice idea!

As it should be.
Europe has been doing this for years.
Cash has worked fine for us, at gas stations.

:agree:
Please don't shoot the messenger! This is the second post today where a fellow Villager was just trying to make us aware of unfortunate situations they have encountered so we can be on the look out.

When I lived in Virginia, I used to get gas at either Mobile or Exxon. You could get from them a black key fob (for lack of the real name) to be placed on your key ring that could be linked to any credit card you wanted. When you got gas, you pressed the key fob to a certain place on the pump. You didn't have to get your credit card out. It was quick and easy and seemed safer to me.

I really loved it at the time of the DC sniper shootings when everyone was checking out the people at the other pumps! You didn't have to go inside to pay! And, getting gas was quick and easy.

I could never figure out why more gas companies didn't offer this key fob. I know it probably cost them more money, but somethings are worth the cost.

Thanks for the heads up, lightworker. You were not slamming anyone....just relaying the facts. I appreciate it.

I buy the gas cards whenever Publix runs their $10 discount ($50 card for $40). I buy as many as allowed....you have to buy $50 in groceries for each card, so that's when I stock up on paper towels, cat liter, dish soap, etc., etc. I pay the bill at Publix with my credit card, so I still get my points but don't worry about the pump being rigged, or any other problem..Just hope there's never a problem at Publix!! :)

Thanks casita. What gas cards do you mean? That sounds like a plan. I looked into the shell cards and the discount ones are like debit cards to that doesn'r work for me. I use Publix so your idea might work. Is there an expiry date on the cards? we are in town in the Spring and Fall so I would prefer no expiry date. thanks for any info.

LW888

No expiration date. Basically, they are like $50 gift cards. They have Shell and Racetrac. Publix runs the special about once a month or 6 weeks. No set date, you just have to check the Thursday flyer to see if there's a coupon. Don't really need the coupon, and even if I didn't see the Thur. paper, I always ask if they are on special. Sometimes the checker will even ask if I want one, if I go over $50.

I believe that the Exxon version is called Express-Pass. However..if there's an illegal skimmer attached to the pump, it will still steal your information. And since those key fobs are a radio transmission from the fob to the pump people have been known to collect the info with special radio receivers placed nearby. Again if you are using the gas dealer's card...Exxon, Mobil, Shell, etc..unless you have a commercial fueling card the credit limits are usually around $500, and as I mentioned earlier if they steal the info off your gas card, you can't use an Exxon or BP card to buy things at WalMart or Best Buy. If you're going to use your MC, Visa, Discover or AmEx and you are worried about pump security, just go into the store and have the attendant swipe your card for you at the register.

I use a BP card now and my balance is a lot more than $500. I put all my charges on that card and pay them every month. And, yes I use it at the grocery store, etc. I even paid my annual Stellar services with it. I think the lowest I paid for gas this past year was $1.67 a gallon because of that card!

I think if you look closely at your "BP" card, you will find somewhere on the card that it is really a VISA or MASTERCARD.

Have you got a BP card that is co-branded as a Visa or MC? What I'm talking about is a gas company's credit card that isn't good for anything but purchasing fuel and items at their stores.

466 Gas Stations
 

In reading this post, I find it interesting that the compromised card was at a gas station on route 466. A few weeks ago, we also bought gas on route 466, but it was the Shell closest to Bob Evans restaurant. Within and hour 600 in 3 $200 charges w charged at at Racetrack station fast station in Orlando! We were called by American Express when the 3rd 200 charge was needing to be approved. We weren't even home. I talked to the gas station and asked them to check to see if something was on the reader. They said they would and that sometimes just the signal from the pump to the computer to record the transaction is compromised in transition. Maybe there is someone or group working the route 466 area stations. We did use and end pump as all the others were so busy. For some reason a person we told about this mentioned that they never use the end pumps and always use the middle ones as the middle pumps are in more view of the workers in the storefront.
Anyway, I just thought I would interject that it is probably not the gas station personal, but someone that is clever enough to keep moving about.

Got a notice from my bank today about my debit card having been compromised and they would reissue a new one on xxx date. Every merchant big and small seems to have vulnerabilities these days! Make sure you monitor your accounts, really all you can do anymore.

really sorry that happened to you mjfg, feels so icky when you get violated like that

We use Murphy's gas station on 466. I think I am correct in stating that it is American Gas and not OPEC which is why we do business there. Will monitor our cards closely in future though.

I don't think that's true. 45% of Murphy's oil comes from Malaysia. But beyond that, I think that how oil is refined and sent through pipelines makes it impossible to segregate oil that is pumped from American ground from oil that is pumped from other places.

Is the gas at the pump 100% refined in the USofA? ... yes, without question
Is the crude oil it is refined from a 100% USofA product? ..... not a chance

Murphy does not even make such a claim on their very own web page.

About Us - Low Gas Prices, Friendly Service from Murphy USA

[QUOTE=LndLocked;866613]Is the gas at the pump 100% refined in the USofA? ... yes, without question
Is the crude oil it is refined from a 100% USofA product? ..... not a chance
Murphy does not even make such a claim on their very own web page. /QUOTE]

Well I had to go research this for myself because we were under the impression that Murphy was all American. Found the following from Murphy:

"Our parent company Murphy Oil is a public corporation located in El Dorado, Arkansas, and traded on the New York Stock Exchange.

We explore and drill many of our own sites around the world, including in Australia, Canada, Malaysia, West Africa and off the US Gulf Coast. We own 2 refineries located in the United States and 1 refinery in the United Kingdom that provides some of our gasoline product that we offer at our stores. Like most major oil refiners, we also receive product on the open market, and due to the fungibility of oil, it is difficult to determine the origin of that product.
The bottom line is that by the time crude oil gets from the ground into our gasoline tanks, there's no practical way for consumers to know exactly where it came from."

So now I know!

Chilis
 

We ate there Mon night and used their payment machine.

Dang, I didn't realize that gas stations were so widely compromised. Is it because the pumps are outside and more easily accessible to the thieves?

I guess it makes sense to pay cash for gas, but the conveeeeenience of not having to go inside and stand in line is hard to resist. *insert emoticon for lazy*