Imagine waking up one morning and your bank account reads zero dollars.
That's about what happened to Martha Morrow.
"My bank told me that there was unusual activity going on with my bank account and said that they had cleaned out my bank account and there was two dollars left," Morrow explains how she found out her card information had been compromised.
Many residents in our viewing area believe someone, somehow, stole their debit card information from local retailers.
For some residents these scammers headed to the ATM and stole cash.. For others they made purchases at hotels, or other retailers across the country.
It's something that's left many people up in arms.
Morrow says, "It's just kinda heart breaking to know that you work for a living and you know you're just hoping to accomplish something and then there's some people that can come in and clean your bank account out."
Some residents I spoke with today had no idea of the scam but they say it sure will change their shopping habits.
Nettie Henderson says she'll change her shopping habits, "For the next few days, yes. I'll definitely use cash or else use credit cards."
Banks and Credit Unions I spoke with say it's important to note this has nothing to do with them.
It's believed that these scammers stole the information directly from a retailer.
While, most victims believe they will get their money back. It still doesn't rest easy.
"You know it's devastating and heart breaking to know that you know there's no security in that where they can take out all the money they want," explains Morrow.
It you think you may have been affected that you contact your bank and local law enforcement.
In Fort Oglethorpe, Jillian Pavlica, WDEF News 12.
Most residents believe Wal-mart is the common factor in all of this.
Local law enforcement has not yet released any statement on the issue and an official with the GBI says they are unaware of anything at this point.
