FBI warns card shops about stolen credit card scheme
TCG Date editorial team1 min read
Seven New Jersey shops were hit by a stolen credit card scheme. The FBI is investigating and has issued advice.
The FBI has warned trading card shops about a fraud scheme after seven stores in New Jersey were hit between September 2025 and March 2026. The targets were mostly high-value Pokémon cards, paid for with stolen credit card details.
How the scheme works
- According to News 12 New Jersey, a customer tries to pay by tapping a phone. When that fails, they ask the clerk to key in a card number by hand, and that number belongs to a stolen card.
- The fraud often only surfaces weeks later, by which time the cards have been resold.
- 6abc reports that some thieves use an app that cycles through stolen card numbers until one is approved. Others work in pairs, with one distracting staff while the other reaches over the counter.
- The FBI also says vendors have been robbed outside card events or followed as they left.
- Its advice to shops includes disabling manual card entry, asking for photo ID and keeping display cases locked. Dexerto notes that no arrests have been reported so far.
How binderly.cards does it differently
On binderly.cards you show your cards in a digital binder. Other players see the actual cards online first and message you in chat. You meet in person near you and settle payment directly between yourselves, as binderly.cards handles no money and charges no fees.
At conventions, your personal QR code shows your trade cards while your binder stays closed, so fewer people see everything you're carrying. It doesn't protect you from fraud, but it means you don't have to put your whole collection on display.