16 times • APRIL 14, 2016 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com Glendale hears how to fight financial crimes By Anthony Giudice agiudice@ridgewoodtimes.com @A_GiudiceReport Financial crimes are the fastest growing crimes in the world, and many Queens residents wonder how they can step ahead of the high-tech crooks before they steal their money and personal information. Detective Dina Moretti from the NYPD’s Financial Crimes Task Force outlined what these criminals tend to do and gave tips on how to protect your personal information during the April 12 104th Precinct Community Council meeting in Glendale. Two of the more popular methods these crooks use to gather victims’ personal information are data breaches and device skimming. Data breaches occur at merchant stores and are more commonly known as computer hacks or compromises. Device skimming is when bandits attach a device to an ATM, gas pump or point-of-sale terminal that can capture both debit card information and personal identification numbers. This used to be a popular tactic at bank ATMs. “Perpetrators have moved away from bank ATM skimming devices — those used to be really hot and really big,” Moretti said. “Now what we’re seeing is they were too easy to monitor. Sometimes the perps were caught, more often cashout trends were noticed right away and accounts were shut down by the bank.” These criminals now set their sights on standalone ATMs in locations that are not as heavily monitored, such as those at convenience stores, gas stations Detective Dina Moretti at the 104th Precinct Community Council meeting on Tuesday night. or hotel lobbies. These locations also give the crooks a larger pool of users from whom they can steal. Skimmers use a magnetic stripe reader to capture debit card information and often a tiny hidden camera or device overlay to capture customer keystrokes to get the victim’s PIN. Crooks have been known to also use data intercept devices that are hardwired into the ATM or gas pump to capture information as it is passed from the machine to an Internet connection. Even more technologically advanced methods are being implanted into gas pumps. “Perpetrators utilize Bluetooth technology where possible to avoid having to come back and recover those skimmers,” Moretti said. “These devices can usually operate indefinitely and are found inside the gas pumps.” To prevent become a victim of this type of crime, Moretti suggests using ATMs at a bank and always covering your hand when inputting your PIN, as well as paying a clerk at a gas station to minimize the potential of being skimmed. Data breaches are used in credit card milling scams where crooks brake into a store’s data to get your credit card RIDGEWOOD TIMES/Photo by Anthony Giudice information, then sell your information online to criminals who will forge fake credit cards with your information. Other locations where your personal information is kept and could potentially be breached is at doctors’/dentists’ offices, car dealerships, hospitals, insurance companies and account or tax offices. Moretti advised minimizing your online profile, setting alerts for your name, limiting using your debit card at stores and checking for abnormalities at ATMs and point-of-sale terminals as ways to avoid becoming a victim of this crime. A major Middle Village sewer project designed to stop flooding woes is finally set to begin BY ROBERT POZARYC KI AND ANTHONY GIUDICE editorial@ridgewoodtimes.com @ridgewoodtimes After many years of public appeals, planning and waiting, a Middle Village sewer reconstruction project is finally set to break ground. The $22 million project will replace sewer and water mains beneath Penelope Avenue and connecting streets in a low-lying area of Middle Village that, in years past, experienced flooding during torrential summer rainstorms. Flooding problems in the area came to a head in August 2007, when a massive thunderstorm swamped the area of Penelope Avenue and 72nd Street. Sewer lines through the area became overwhelmed by the rush of water, causing runoff to back up into nearby homes, garages and driveways. “This project started when we, Community Board 5 (CB 5), had a sit-down meeting with some of the more important people of DEP going back to 2007 after that terrible rain when it rained 4 ½ inches in 45 minutes around here,” said Gary Giordano, district manager of CB 5. “From what I know, the city’s sewer lines have been built to be able to handle 1 to 1 ½ inches per hour.” Following an investigation, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) moved forward with plans to replace sewer lines in the area of Penelope Avenue. The plans, however, were beset by one delay after another, even as Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley called on the agency to expedite the process. With the last obstacles now cleared, the DEP will move forward with replacing the existing sewer lines — which are between 15 and 63 inches in diameter — with larger combined box sewers and/or sewer pipes between 24 and 54 inches in diameter. According to Giordano, the project is slated to start in a month’s time or less. Crews will be working from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Monday through Friday, leading to road closures during that time. Depending on where they will be working, the Q38 bus will have to be detoured as well. There will be a 72-hour notice, followed by a 24-hour notice for all homes expected to see water service shutdowns during construction. While the roadway is open in spots, crews will also install new water mains measuring between 8 and 12 inches in diameter and, where needed, new fire hydrants. “I expect them to work one block at a time,” Giordano said. “I expect them to start with the water main work. When they are done with that, I expect them to start the sewer work.” The work will take place along Penelope Avenue between 71st and 74th streets; 74th Street between Juniper Boulevard South and Juniper Valley Road; 75th and Gray streets between Juniper Valley Road and 66th Drive; 77th Street between Gray Street and Juniper Valley Road; and Juniper Valley Road between 74th and 77th streets. Residents can expect to endure sporadic detours, parking restrictions and even some service outages while work is underway. The city estimates the project will be completed by December 2017. QNS has reached out to DEP for comment, but they have not responded by press time.
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