Georgia Good Samaritan scammed by couple she helped

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A Georgia woman wants everyone to know how easy it is to be the victim of identity theft after two people she was trying to help stole her credit card information.

Tymikia Jackson said she was pumping gas when a woman walked up to her. "She asked me can I please have some money so that I can put gas in my tank," Jackson said to WXIA.

Jackson, who has a big heart, couldn't resist. "So I gave her my last $20 in my pocket," she said. But the reward was worth it. "She was ecstatic," she said. "She said, 'Thank you so much, I really appreciate it ... can I please have a hug?'"

There was a man with the woman who was in the driver seat of their car. "So he got out of the car and said 'thank you so much, can I please have a hug,' " Jackson said. "But the hug was different."

She told the couple to pay her good deed forward. But instead they took advantage of her.

The next morning she realized why the couple was so eager to hug her. "I went through my bank account and close to $3,000 was gone," she said.

Less than two hours after she left the gas station, someone rang up two charges on her bank debit card. There was a charge of more than $2,400 from a Kroger and $200 withdrawn from a nearby ATM.

Jackson was the victim of high-tech thieves who scan information from your wallet or purse simply by being close to you. Jackson had her credit cards in a cellphone case that was in her front pocket. Her information was scanned when she was hugged.

Despite the deception Jackson said she won't turn her back on the needy. "Everyone's not a bad person," she said. "You take the lesson from the setback, but I'll never stop helping people."

You can protect yourself from radio frequency identification (RFID) scanners by purchasing anti-RFID wallets or sleeves they can't penetrate.