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A viral post circulating claims when using your debit card, enter in the wrong PIN number, if it is a counterfeit machine it will deceptively process the payment and produce a receipt.
An authentic machine will reject the PIN and request a "try again" of some sort.
To find out if this advice really works in alerting you to debit card fraud, our Verify team reached out to experts at the American Bankers Association.
A spokesperson told Verify researchers this method is not a proven effective way to protect yourself from credit card fraud, remember credit card skimming involves placing a small illegal device onto legitimate card readers that then steals your debit or credit card information.
So entering a wrong pin number to see if a card reader is fake won't stop crooks from already gaining access to your credit card number.
Experts at the FTC, say to avoid skimmers at remote location like gas stations closely examine card readers,try to wiggle the card reader before you put in your card. If it moves, it could have been previously tampered with.
Android users can consider getting the free Skimmer Scanner app that detects gas pump skimmers via Bluetooth technology, last but least, both FTC and American Bankers Association experts say to always shield the PIN pad with your other hand as you enter your PIN so it cannot be seen.
So we verified entering an incorrect pin on a card reader is not a reliable method to detect debit card fraud.