Walmart makes 'chastity belt' change to self-checkout machines after secret thefts

Walmart is making a change to their self-checkout machines after several secret thefts, but some are dubbing the new machines a 'chastity belt.'

Major retailer Walmart is making a change to its self-checkout machines following several undisclosed thefts, but some are dubbing the new machines a "chastity belt."

The retailer, which has been striving to help customers save money and time amid rising grocery prices, added a bright yellow "belt" atop the pin pads of the card reader after a surge in card skimming.

A Reddit user known as mateo360, who claims to be a Walmart employee, posted a photo of the machine captioned "my manager called it a chastity belt for the pin pad." This follows another Reddit post featuring an image of a Walmart card reader with a similar gadget, and red tape that went viral.

"I think this might be protecting the reader from people attaching skimmers," a Reddit user wrote.

"If you look closely, you can see that those yellow edges are actually protruding outward, like the cover around the pin pad at an ATM," another person commented.

Card skimming is when someone illegally installs a skimming device, usually into the card reader or attached to the keypad with a fake overlay, to obtain someone's personal data.

This could lead to unauthorized transactions, identity theft, and counterfeit card creation. Criminals also occasionally install pinhole cameras, which can capture pin numbers being entered into the keypad.

In addition to new tools, Walmart has also removed self-checkout machines from some of its stores, hoping this will lessen the frequency of illegal activity.

There are ways shoppers and Walmart employees can tell if a machine has been compromised. A card reader that's loose, off-center, or has parts that wiggle could indicate that it has been affected. The machine could also have a thicker-than-normal or different-colored keypad.

In the case of the "chastity belt," the gadget is reportedly preventing the terminal from being covered by skimmers. Employees and shoppers will also know if a machine has been tampered with if they notice red tape on the machine is missing or damaged.

According to the Daily Mail, over 231,000 cards were stolen by card skimmers in 2024, a 27 percent decrease from the previous year. However, Walmart continues to be a frequent card-skimming target throughout the nation.

Last summer, two men were caught installing fake pin pads into self-checkout machines in Connecticut. In March, skimming devices were also found in Wal-Mart stores throughout Virginia and three stores in Pennsylvania.