JOHNSTON CITY, Ill. — Even the most cautious consumer may have trouble guarding against what a local man said happened to him while inside an area store.
He claims a hacker was outside the store, stealing customer's bank card numbers as they checked out. As if that's not strange enough, how this victim responded is even more remarkable.
The Johnston City, Illinois man said he wasn't getting any answers from police or store management and figured out what happened on his own by hours of online research. He determined most likely where this happened, how much money the hackers stole from him and even more amazingly, told police exactly where to find a suspect involved in what he believes is an elaborate network of cyber criminals.
A couple of cans of ravioli almost cost Steve Haynes everything he'd worked for.
"I got ripped off and I didn't like it," Haynes said.
He was ripped off by someone he thinks was hanging out in the Dollar General parking lot, not a customer but a crook with a computer and unauthorized access to the store's cash register network.
Haynes said he couldn't believe what he found online. Crooks can buy scanners. They set them up inside their car, then they sit inside their car and steal info from stores using wireless networks.
"Made me mad, so I thought I'd see what I could do about it," Haynes said.
So, he went to the online store where a nearly $700 unauthorized purchase was made. He chatted with a customer service representative who revealed the shipping address. Turns out, it was a house in Mattoon, Illinois.
Haynes called Mattoon Police and heard back the very next day.
"(The police officer) called me the next morning and said, 'I got him' and it's an international thing. They were sending that stuff everywhere," Haynes said.
He has a new debit card in the mail and said if he ever sees a hacker in a parking lot, he'll make sure their equipment is destroyed.
"That laptop's history because I'll jerk it out of the car and smash it to pieces, call 911, and he'll be more than happy to go with the police when I get there," Haynes said.
Haynes said the bank reversed that $700 charge and as for the Mattoon Police, the deputy chief said he was unaware of this particular case, but that there is a mechanism crooks use to hack into stores' computers.
We're still waiting to hear back from the police on the specifics of this case.
We're not sure about the fate of the man caught in Mattoon. Haynes said police told him the man confessed and said he was part of an international scheme and that he would have products sent to his house and then ship them oversees, and would get $40 each time.
We also reached out to the Dollar General Corporation. A manager at the Johnston City store said she couldn't comment and we were unable to get in touch with anyone from the corporate office.
