Atm card compromised in cozumel!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[kmurray719]

Huh. I really don't think there is any association at all between BOA and Santander nor has there been for a couple of years since Santander opened banks in the US and became competition. I also don't think it's true that they don't charge fees at Santander ATM's, based on 1) their telling us that they were going to start charging and 2) their starting to charge us. That relationship was the only reason we had a BOA account at all.

There is still some kind of association between the two. Santander doesn't charge me any ATM fees when I use my BOA card, the only charge I see is the 3% foreign transaction fee from BOA. And that has been consistent over the past 5 or so months using it regularly.

 

[cvchief]

There is still some kind of association between the two. Santander doesn't charge me any ATM fees when I use my BOA card, the only charge I see is the 3% foreign transaction fee from BOA. And that has been consistent over the past 5 or so months using it regularly.

Right. That is the change. You have to pay 3 percent.

---------- Post added September 15th, 2015 at 10:37 AM ----------

Chief I looked at xoom. Pretty good selection of pick up spots on Cozumel. What is the process for picking it up at those locations?

I do the transaction on the phone, choose Electra down by Mega. I walk to the back and wait to get a window. I tell her Xoom. I slip my passport in the slot. I open the xoom email with the transaction number and zoom in on it. I push my phone up against the glass so she can read it and type in it.

She slides back the passport and a wad of pesos and whatever change. Easy Peasy.

Just NEVER try to increase the limits which is like 3000 US a month. NEVER call customer service. When we were car shopping, I tried to send a bunch of money to a amigo on the island to stockpile for car shopping. I applied to have my limit raised. Instead the block me from sending money to that guy. I called customer service and basically was told we don't tell why we block people, and then gave me the wink wink, put him in with a different email. So I did that and I could send to him again. Still with the same limit. Since then it has worked fine. You just have to send enough at one time that the 4.99 fee makes sense. $100 is 4.99% surcharge which isn't that good. at $1000US is it 0.499% which is really good. And no ATM worries. Much easier to park at electra than try to park to get into the Santander ATM on 10 Ave!

I am playing the SW points game though, so if they take a CC I am using a CC. Nailed the companion pass through 2016 by also getting a business card. Bueno. Hence, I use less cash than I used to use.

 

[cvchief]

And once you have xoom all setup, the mobile app is a piece of cake. Comes up on last person, enter amount, swipe to send. Exchange rate isn't always perfect, but with a bigger send, I think it is still cheaper than other options. It is easier all around.

 

[DjDiverDan]

At CozumelmyCozumel.com, there is a link to an article on an ATM Skimming scheme running all over the Yucatan, from Cancun to Tulum and Akumal, all using a tiny Bluetooth chip attached internally in the ATM (so that no skimmer is apparent on the card slot or the keypad). But it is easy for anyone with a smart phone to detect a Bluetooth signal - just turn on your iPhone, iPad, or Android device, go to Settings - Bluetooth, and see what devices in your area are emitting Bluetooth signal. If the ATM which you are standing in front of has a Bluetooth signal, that signal is NOT from the ATM original equipment; it's from a chip installed by a skimmer, and you should NOT trust the machine.

 

[Zeagle Eagle]

At CozumelmyCozumel.com, there is a link to an article on an ATM Skimming scheme running all over the Yucatan, from Cancun to Tulum and Akumal, all using a tiny Bluetooth chip attached internally in the ATM (so that no skimmer is apparent on the card slot or the keypad). But it is easy for anyone with a smart phone to detect a Bluetooth signal - just turn on your iPhone, iPad, or Android device, go to Settings - Bluetooth, and see what devices in your area are emitting Bluetooth signal. If the ATM which you are standing in front of has a Bluetooth signal, that signal is NOT from the ATM original equipment; it's from a chip installed by a skimmer, and you should NOT trust the machine.

Thanks, that is great advice.

 

[mikeycanuk]

Cash is king.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[DandyDon]

Cash is king.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Yeah but who wants to carry enough for the vacation on the flight down, holding the declining supply thru the vacation? Many hotels do not have room safes. Better to replenish there from time to time.

 

[BRT]

Back in the 90's we would fly in with more cash than I liked to carry. When heading down to Xcalak my thought always was that anybody we met should know that we had a bunch of cash. Kind of scary.

 

[ggunn]

Back in the 90's we would fly in with more cash than I liked to carry. When heading down to Xcalak my thought always was that anybody we met should know that we had a bunch of cash. Kind of scary.

Back in the 90's I carried travelers' cheques. They were a bit of a PITA, but they worked. Nowadays I use the same bank owned ATM every couple of days, the one in the municipal building across the street from the Palace.

 

[ccannon707]

At CozumelmyCozumel.com, there is a link to an article on an ATM Skimming scheme running all over the Yucatan, from Cancun to Tulum and Akumal, all using a tiny Bluetooth chip attached internally in the ATM (so that no skimmer is apparent on the card slot or the keypad). But it is easy for anyone with a smart phone to detect a Bluetooth signal - just turn on your iPhone, iPad, or Android device, go to Settings - Bluetooth, and see what devices in your area are emitting Bluetooth signal. If the ATM which you are standing in front of has a Bluetooth signal, that signal is NOT from the ATM original equipment; it's from a chip installed by a skimmer, and you should NOT trust the machine.

If you read Part 1 & Part 2, you will see the author - a reporter turned cyber-security man working on a tip - had to buy a Mexican smart phone to get the Bluetooth signal... none of his US equipment would work. He also confirmed (in the comments) that he never found a compromised ATM attached to a Bank. Something that is repeated here again and again is always use an ATM attached to a Bank, not a stand alone. What I found fairly scary is plenty of ATM's in resorts were compromised and the fact that it's an inside job. He started in Cancun, went to Tulum, PdC and then Cozumel. Here are the threads... Part 3 is in the works. Pt 1: Tracking a Bluetooth Skimmer Gang in Mexico Pt 2: Tracking Bluetooth Skimmers in Mexico, Part II