By Ilhaam Hoosain
09 October 2007
Cape Town restaurants are being encouraged to buy portable hand-held credit card machines which cost about R6 800 to protect their patrons from credit card criminals.
The 11 waitrons, nine from Canal Walk and two from Milnerton, who were arrested in connection with credit card skimming last week of, has served as an awakening for the industry, with the Federated Hospitality Association of South Africa (Fedhasa) reminding companies of their duty to protect patrons from credit card scams.
Skimming is conducted with a hand-held swiping device that duplicates all the information on the magnetic strip of a credit card. It is then copied onto a blank card and this card becomes as effective as the original.
The Cape Town Fish Market restaurant in Canal Walk reported that its use of portable machines had limited the possibility of fraud.
"This machine safeguards our clients and the business itself," said co-owner Malcolm Royston.
A restaurant manager in Canal Walk who wants to remain anonymous complained that the portable machine was "not cost effective".
"R6 800 must come from our pockets if the machine breaks or falls," the manager said.
Cape Town Fedhasa chairperson Nils Heckscher said the issue was as a "matter of urgency" and the arrests last week can be used as a "springboard" for discussions to re-align employment practices.
"We will talk with financial institutions to jointly draw up an action plan to eradicate this problem," he said.
09 October 2007
Cape Town restaurants are being encouraged to buy portable hand-held credit card machines which cost about R6 800 to protect their patrons from credit card criminals.
The 11 waitrons, nine from Canal Walk and two from Milnerton, who were arrested in connection with credit card skimming last week of, has served as an awakening for the industry, with the Federated Hospitality Association of South Africa (Fedhasa) reminding companies of their duty to protect patrons from credit card scams.
Skimming is conducted with a hand-held swiping device that duplicates all the information on the magnetic strip of a credit card. It is then copied onto a blank card and this card becomes as effective as the original.
The Cape Town Fish Market restaurant in Canal Walk reported that its use of portable machines had limited the possibility of fraud.
"This machine safeguards our clients and the business itself," said co-owner Malcolm Royston.
A restaurant manager in Canal Walk who wants to remain anonymous complained that the portable machine was "not cost effective".
"R6 800 must come from our pockets if the machine breaks or falls," the manager said.
Cape Town Fedhasa chairperson Nils Heckscher said the issue was as a "matter of urgency" and the arrests last week can be used as a "springboard" for discussions to re-align employment practices.
"We will talk with financial institutions to jointly draw up an action plan to eradicate this problem," he said.
Comments