Thirteen people have been charged by US attorneys in a massive fraud operation which netted some $2m in stolen funds.

Four defendants are charged as mastermind in a plot to install card skimming devices at gas pumps. Most were located in the southern US. According to District Attorney Cyrus Vance, skimmers were installed at Raceway and Racetrac chain gas stations in Texas, South Carolina and Georgia.

Once the thieves had the card data and PIN numbers, they printed out forged bank cards and withdrew the cash from ATMs.

"Cybercriminals and identity thieves are not limited to any geographic region, working throughout the world behind computers," Vance said.

"In this case, the defendants are charged with stealing personal identifying information from victims in southern states, used forged bank cards on the East Coast, and withdrew stolen proceeds on the West Coast."

The four ringleaders in the operation will be facing charges of felony counts ranging from money laundering and grand larceny to possession of forged devices and forgery instruments.