Question 1

What is the "ATM Skimming and Card Cloning" scam in Puebla?

Accepted Answer

Standalone ATMs in the historic centre and inside convenience stores have been fitted with card-reading skimmers and pinhole cameras, and Mexico has had large Bluetooth-skimming rings draining tourist cards for months after the trip. Cloned-card charges often appear weeks later once you've left Puebla. Freestanding machines on tourist streets are tampered with far more often than bank-lobby ones. Only use ATMs inside a bank branch during opening hours, cover the keypad as you type your PIN, and check the card slot for loose or protruding parts. Use a credit card (not debit) where possible and set transaction alerts.

Question 2

What is the "Counterfeit Peso Notes in Change" scam in Puebla?

Accepted Answer

Vendors, market stalls and some taxi drivers slip fake 500- and 200-peso notes into your change, where they are hard to spot mixed among real bills. A related move: a seller inspects your real note, palms it, and hands it back claiming it's counterfeit so you'll produce another. Passing a fake note onward, even unknowingly, is a serious crime in Mexico. Tilt larger notes to check the colour-shifting holographic strip and feel for the raised-ink texture and watermark. Count change in front of the vendor, prefer small bills, and never let a note leave your hand for 'inspection' during a cash dispute.

Money & ATM Scams in Puebla

ATM Skimming and Card Cloning

Counterfeit Peso Notes in Change

Experienced a scam here?