Kelowna

The latest frauds occurred in Peachland and Kelowna.

RCMP Const. Steve Holmes, says staff at an unidentified business on Highway 33 noticed a man replacing the store's pin pad Sunday morning.

He says when police reviewed the surveillance tape, they noticed the same man in the store Saturday evening at closing time.

"He removed the store's PIN pad and replaced it with a non-working one," says Holmes.

"It is believed that the store's pin pad was then altered with the addition of devices used to record card information and replaced it on the Sunday morning."

Holmes says the suspect is Caucasian, in his mid 20s with medium length brown hair.

He was seen wearing a black jacket and a black baseball hat.

"Police are warning all businesses to be wary of persons entering the premised just before closing and first thing in the morning. Please check the store's PIN pad, after the doors have been locked for the night, to be sure they are the proper ones in place."

Holmes says businesses should put stickers on their PIN pads or mark them so they can be identified.

"To discourage PIN pad theft, anchor the PIN pad to the counter with the use of a mounting bracket or metal cable or store the pin pad in a locked drawer when not in use."

Despite the number of thefts involving PIN pad fraud and the number of warning issued by police, many businesses continue to be hit by thieves and fraud artists.

Police continue to refuse to release the names of the businesses despite the numerous warnings over the past two or three years.

"Ultimately it's the banks that suffer, they are the ones that generally experience the financial loss," says Holmes.

"In terms of identifying the businesses, that is not up to the police to do. There are companies that have these machines and I know there are discussions about what to do with people that do not comply."

Holmes says he understands there is more compliance among businesses each time a warning is issued.