16 Jul 2010

Canadians charged over theft of Eftpos keypads

4:30 pm on 16 July 2010

Police in Auckland have arrested and charged three Canadians over the theft of Eftpos keypads, following a joint operation with Customs officials.

Police say the trio have been remanded in custody after appearing in the Auckland District Court on charges of participating in organised crime.

The investigation was initiated after a provider of Eftpos technology notified police that 11 of its keypads had been stolen from different Auckland locations.

Police say offenders overseas have been known to replace the stolen keypads with modified keypads of their own in order to capture customers' card details.

Recent Australian media reports have described New Zealand as a soft target for Eftpos fraud, but an Auckland city police spokesperson denies that, saying officers here are vigilant in keeping up with financial crime.