ROANOKE (WSLS 10) - You may notice a change in routine when you use your debit card at the local Walmart store. A pin number is no longer required.
For many of us, swiping a debit card is a daily routine.
Recommended Videos
It's how Jeff Baker prefers to pay, in part because of the security of typing in a pin number. That changed last week after a trip to Walmart.
"(My bill) ended up being $16," Baker said. "When I checked out I used my debit card, swiped it and it said thank you very much, have a nice day. It never asked me for my pin code."
That's the new normal at the megastore, which several months ago implemented the policy.
Customers are only required to type in a debit card pin if the bill is $50 or more. It's a frustration for Baker, who dealt with fraud on his debit card in a separate incident just two months ago.
"We need to be increasing security, not decreasing it," he said. "Every time we take a step back from security it just benefits the thieves, it does not benefit the consumer."
According to the Better Business Bureau, if fraud does occur on your debit card it will likely be covered by your bank's zero liability coverage.
A Walmart company spokesman said the change is about convenience. But the store is also taking steps to increase security like installing credit card chip readers at every register, which is considered safer than swiping your card.
Debit card chip readers are expected to be added by October.
Baker knows the new policy likely isn't going anywhere and he'll take an extra second before swiping at the register.
"I'm going to have to think about what I'll have to use," he said. "What's going to protect me when the company's should be the one protecting the consumers."