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Toronto cab driver ring steals dozens of debit cards from drunk customers

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K

Kinitari

Black Canada Mafia
http://www.nationalpost.com/m/wp/bl...ders-and-empty-their-bank-accounts-police-say

Since late November, taxi drivers have allegedly used bogus point-of-sale machines to swipe data from a customer’s debit or credit card, then handed the customer a fake card that looked similar to their own.

The customers don’t immediately notice the card isn’t theirs, and the fraudster takes the real card “to the nearest ATM and liquidates your accounts,” said Det. Chris Beattie, the financial crimes unit’s lead investigator on the case.

....

“We were talking to a bunch of the cab companies and basically saying, ‘How do we track these guys down?'” Beattie said. “They said, ‘Well, the easiest way for us to do that is to get the cab number.'”

“But a lot of the times, the customers won’t do that … Joe Q Public who’s coming out of a bar at two in the morning will just flag down a cab. ”
Click to expand...

What with everyone in Toronto already hating cabs, I can't imagine anyone will be too surprised. The most surprising thing for me is that these drivers had working card machines
 
F

Fuchsdh

Member
That's actually a pretty ingenious scheme, in that they effectively insulate themselves from actually getting caught. Probably the only effective option to catch these guys would be undercover cops who act piss-drunk.
 
T

The Jackdog

Member
considering how many times ive had to call an uber because a cab wouldnt take me home in philly because i said no after they screamed "GOT CASH!?" at me, this surprises me.

Guess ill just continue to give all my business to uber. fuck cabs.
 
C

ColdPizza

Banned
Something similar happened to my friend in Vegas...gave the cabby a $20 and expected change. Cabby knew my friend was drunk, did some slight of hand thing where he had another bill handy, said my friend only gave him a $5.
 
S

soultron

Banned
ColdPizza said:
Something similar happened to my friend in Vegas...gave the cabby a $20 and expected change. Cabby knew my friend was drunk, did some slight of hand thing where he had another bill handy, said my friend only gave him a $5.
Click to expand...
We have (superior) plastic rainbow coloured notes here in Canada, so you wouldn't be able to go from a green 20 to a blue 5 here.

It's too bad our dollar is (quite) shit in terms of value!
 
The Elite

The Elite

BOSS
Apathy said:
And the cab companies wonder why we are rooting for their demise.
Click to expand...

There is something really ugly about rooting for people to lose their livelihoods.

It would be a lot better of they looked at the Uber model and worked towards improving their own. I would rather that happen instead of people losing their jobs.
 
A

Apathy

Member
soultron said:
What if it was an inside job...

By an Uber "employee?"

The plot thickens like pea soup, friends.
Click to expand...

I hope Netflix picks up your new drama show. I would binge watch it

DoctorWho said:
There is something really ugly about rooting for people to lose their livelihoods.

It would be a lot better of they looked at the Uber model and worked towards improving their own. I would rather that happen instead of people losing their jobs.
Click to expand...

I don't know how much you use cabs, but I live out in Scarborough, I have since I was a young kid. I can't drive because if some medical problems so from about 16 to now (I'm 31), when I have spent time downtown late and have wanted to come home, if the TTC hasn't been available and I've had to use a cab, I can't even remember the times they have screwed me. Either refusing me a fare because it was too far (illegal) or lying to me about their machines working (illegal) or trying to scam me with flat rates. I have lost all patience and respect for the cab companies and their employees, so you'll forgive me if I couldn't give a shit if uber comes in and just flattens cab companies.
 
entremet

entremet

Member
DoctorWho said:
There is something really ugly about rooting for people to lose their livelihoods.

It would be a lot better of they looked at the Uber model and worked towards improving their own. I would rather that happen instead of people losing their jobs.
Click to expand...

Uber has been around for bit now. Why haven't taxi companies responded adequately?

I don't blame the individual drivers, but the cab companies are scummy.
 
The Elite

The Elite

BOSS
entremet said:
Uber has been around for bit now. Why haven't taxi companies responded adequately?

I don't blame the individual drivers, but the cab companies are scummy.
Click to expand...

Change takes time and there seems to be a lot of reluctance, which is bad on them. Also, that shit they did in the streets of Toronto the other day isn't helping their image. They are, in part, acting as architects of their own demise.
 
G

GoldenEye 007

Member
soultron said:
We have (superior) plastic rainbow coloured notes here in Canada, so you wouldn't be able to go from a green 20 to a blue 5 here.

It's too bad our dollar is (quite) shit in terms of value!
Click to expand...

How would that help you if the cabbie claimed and insisted you handed him the 5, then produced one he had on him as if that was the bill given to him? I would think the color or size of the note would make little difference there.
 
G

GoldenEye 007

Member
LakeEarth said:
I get cash for cabs because their debit machines never seem to work when I need them to.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I rarely carry cash. And honestly, I've kicked around leaving my debit card at home too. If they crap doesn't work and they fail to tell me beforehand, they can go pound sand.

Ran into that once where he claimed his machine didn't work. I was like, well I don't have any cash, so...... So he had to use of of those old style paper CC readers. Never again......
 
E

explodet

Member
I only use cabs once in a blue moon, but always use cash for them.

I always assume cabs don't have access to card tech - it's like they don't have enough points to unlock it.
 
I

ItIsOkBro

Member
DoctorWho said:
There is something really ugly about rooting for people to lose their livelihoods.

It would be a lot better of they looked at the Uber model and worked towards improving their own. I would rather that happen instead of people losing their jobs.
Click to expand...
It ain't happening. The companies are terrible and a good portion of the drivers are scum compared to other professions.
 
K

Kinitari

Black Canada Mafia
explodet said:
I only use cabs once in a blue moon, but always use cash for them.

I always assume cabs don't have access to card tech - it's like they don't have enough points to unlock it.
Click to expand...
They do, those machines rarely break as often as they let us think. It's just their pay is sooooo shit, that a good portion take cash and cook the books
 
G

gwailo

Banned
ColdPizza said:
Something similar happened to my friend in Vegas...gave the cabby a $20 and expected change. Cabby knew my friend was drunk, did some slight of hand thing where he had another bill handy, said my friend only gave him a $5.
Click to expand...

Cabbies in Vegas are notorious for this kind of crap. There are horror stories of foreign tourist being longhauled for hundreds or thousands of dollars for trips from the airport to the trip, most of which should be maybe $20-30 at most.

If it happens, the best thing is to get one of the valets/bellhops at the hotels involved. Most of them don't like cabbies either and will basically force the cabbie to let you out and if they don't, the hotel will call the cops to force them to leave the property. In the long run, it's not worth it to the cabbies to risk the lucrative strip pick up spots for some extra money.
 
C

cameron

Member
By Thursday, complaints from cab customers were coming in almost daily — TD Bank alone had filed 65 claims, Beattie said. The thefts weren’t confined to a single cab company, but Beattie wouldn’t say which companies were implicated.
Click to expand...

Sympathy for Toronto cabbies waning.

A driver acting alone in theft is bad enough, but these degenerates working together in a ring is fucking scary. Not just thievery, but also organized cab operations involved in harassment, assault, and trafficking.

The scam comes at an unfortunate time for the industry, as Uber’s expanding presence in the city continues to siphon riders away from traditional taxis. But Kristine Hubbard, operations manager with Beck Taxi, said the incidents aren’t reason to switch to Uber.

“To suggest that this has anything to do with taxis vs. Uber is ludicrous,” she said. “You know what, there is risk when using any kind of payment device.”
Click to expand...

She's not exactly wrong, but that's not how you instill confidence and reassure customers.
 
C

chocoedd

Member
Do traditional cab companies has app for ordering in Canada/USA? In my country, a very popular taxi company has it's own mobile app where I can conveniently order a taxi and I can view my historical orders. Drivers who done something wrong will be traced very quickly. The only drawback is that payment still using cash not online wallet system.
 
K

Kinitari

Black Canada Mafia
chocoedd said:
Do traditional cab companies has app for ordering in Canada/USA? In my country, a very popular taxi company has it's own mobile app where I can conveniently order a taxi and I can view my historical orders. Drivers who done something wrong will be traced very quickly. The only drawback is that payment still using cash not online wallet system.
Click to expand...
I think there are a few apps in the works here, and we can actually use Uber to pay for taxis if we want
 
G

gwailo

Banned
chocoedd said:
Do traditional cab companies has app for ordering in Canada/USA? In my country, a very popular taxi company has it's own mobile app where I can conveniently order a taxi and I can view my historical orders. Drivers who done something wrong will be traced very quickly. The only drawback is that payment still using cash not online wallet system.
Click to expand...

We have one here in Minneapolis called iHail. It works pretty well. It tracks the cab coming to you and sends you a text when it's close. You put in your credit card info into the app beforehand so you can pay that way or via cash to the driver. I haven't used Uber because I live in the far suburbs and Uber seems to only really service certain neighborhoods in the inner city.
 
C

commedieu

Banned
DoctorWho said:
There is something really ugly about rooting for people to lose their livelihoods.

It would be a lot better of they looked at the Uber model and worked towards improving their own. I would rather that happen instead of people losing their jobs.
Click to expand...

Yeah, but thats hardly any fault of the people rooting. Thats on Taxi unions for staying, exactly, the way they are and trying to fight progress. If they can't do whats best for their industry, fuck em. Taxi drivers here feign ignorance when you pull out a card, or they just plain say the machine is broken. They aren't doing their job effectively, and uber is. Its the way of the world.

People doing a horrible job need to not be doing that horrible job.
 
C

chaostrophy

Member
This is why I don't get why people use debit cards, unless they have such terrible finances/credit they can't get a credit card at all.

Credit card fraud=bank's money stolen, bank's problem. I've had fraudulent charges on credit cards a couple of times, and I just get sent a form to sign authorizing the bank/card company to engage law enforcement, sign, return, charges get erased, done.

Debit card fraud=your money stolen, your problem. I've heard so many nightmare stories about it.
 
B

Barrel Cannon

Member
If I used a card and a cab driver tried to rob me in that manner I would drag them out of their car and call the cops. I've ran into a bunch of shady taxi drivers in Toronto during my late nights at work. Some tried suggesting I let them write a ridiculously high number on taxi chit and that they would give me cash in return. I would just give them no tip and tell them I'm reporting them as I left the car. That being said there are a ton of great taxi drivers in Toronto. I have a lot more good stories than bad and it sucks that a few bad apples ruin the name for everyone else.
 
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