CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO)- As the holiday shopping season approaches, scammers are targeting consumers who use tap-to-pay technology through a method called “ghost tapping.”

The scam exploits near-field communication technology on credit cards, allowing thieves to charge victims without their knowledge by getting close enough to read card information through electronic devices.

“They’re close to you, and they have some kind of a device or some kind of mechanism that their device can read your card,” Ericka Dilworth, Director of Operations with the Better Business Bureau office in Broadview Heights.

The technique is called “brushing” because scammers brush up against victims to get within range of their cards or mobile devices.

Scammers intercept near-field communications between electroni

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