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With fuel prices hitting record highs, thieves across the United States are stealing gas by physically extracting gas from pumps and other vehicles or by hacking a network of gas retailers.
Gas thieves may think that reselling stolen gas at a discounted price is in the driver’s favor, but experts say it’s exactly what gas thieves do to men as they think. He says he is not sticking to.
Jeff Leonard, vice president of strategic industry initiatives at the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS), told Fox News Digital: “These are thieves. They aren’t robbing the rich and giving them to the poor. Gas station owners are the least responsible for the high costs. The cost of theft is high and the people are unsecured. When running around in theft. Fuel, that’s a concern for everyone. “
Similarly, Terry Kim Air Force, a veteran co-founder of the NGT Academy, a training academy for network engineering and cybersecurity, said, “I’m really sad because it’s the gas station owner who really loses in this situation.” Stated.
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“You can literally go out of business altogether. [into] Bankruptcy by doing this kind of thing. Stealing oil may help people or get free gas, which is really bad for the owners of these gas stations. “
Earlier this month, at Virginia Beach, police observed a “many vehicles” using equipment to pump gas from the then-closed Citgo station.
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“Preliminary investigations by police have revealed that the device is being used for illegal access to gas pumps. Individuals then sell gasoline at a discounted price via a telephone application and operate it on social media. It was determined that it was being advertised. Virginia Beach police said in a press release on June 14 that several dollars worth of gasoline had been stolen from the business over several days. ”
To protect themselves from cyberattacks, fuel retailers ensure that their networks are up-to-date and well-protected, with vulnerabilities in their technology infrastructure and hackers breaking into and stealing or modifying information. You need to make sure there are no weaknesses that you can do. Stores and franchises also say they need to train employee Kim and Jacob Hess, co-founder of the NGT Academy.
Physical gas theft without cyberattacks is another matter.
Citing data from the US Energy Information Administration, Leonard said that about 25% of gas retailers are experiencing an increase in gas theft compared to last year.
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The thief “accesses the pump, physically or electronically disables the system in some way, resets the price very low, or keeps a transaction open that allows multiple people to perform the same transaction,” Leonard said. Explained.
“It’s one trend. Another trend is people who modify or readjust flat panel vans or certain vehicles, park them on underground storage tanks, draw gas from the underground storage tanks, and then resell them.” He explained. .. “And that’s probably the most common right now.”
In Salt Lake City, Utah, security camera footage was taken by a thief stealing gas from a truck parked outside the fire protection company Summit Fire and Protection before it caught fire.
On June 12, the thief was stealing the catalytic converter and gas of an already parked truck before another thief tried to steal more gas from the vehicle. KSLV-TV..
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“The man tried to suck up the gas, but the sucking wasn’t working, so he decided to dig a gas tank, when he ignited,” branch manager Travis Mills told the outlet. Told. Not worth the $ 5 he would have saved due to the injury he suffered. “
The Las Vegas Police have also warned of physical gas theft.
“These thieves are very sophisticated. They take trucks that look like regular trucks like highway service trucks, and there are complex plumbing inside them,” said the Las Vegas Police Department. Lieutenant Jeff Swanbeck Financial crime section told KVVU.. “They open the gas pump itself, and there’s a set of gears in it, and they’re smart enough to understand how to operate the gears.”
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Leonard explained how a thief would be at risk when trying to physically steal gas.
“First, fuel burns with steam, not liquid, so it’s dangerous for thieves …. Smoke is volatile,” he said. “Gas stations have a sophisticated steam recovery system. Thieves don’t. Gas stations have the specific problem that they aren’t dangerous to anyone but the thief sucking up fuel … basically moving It’s a bomb. “
Fuel retailers need to be aware of people who are “staying outside” or “parking on an underground storage tank” for extended periods of time.
According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), the national average gasoline price on weekends is $ 4.91 per gallon, exceeding $ 5 and $ 6 per gallon in some western and northeastern states. In California, Saturday’s average was $ 6.33.
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Under Biden, gas prices rose five cents overnight, paying an average of $ 1.82 more than just a year ago, when prices were $ 3.05, according to AAA.
According to the latest data from the Energy Information Agency, the United States produced 12 million barrels of crude oil per day in the week leading up to June 10. By comparison, domestic drillers produced 13.1 million barrels per day in March 2020.
Thomas Catenacci and Houston Keene of Fox News contributed to this report.