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ATM Thefts....A rising menace!

Why it happens?

ATM thefts: Banks yet to learn lessons on securityBangalore, Nikhil Gangadhar, Oct 3, 2013, Deccan Herald

Numerous instances of burglars damaging money-vending machines and decamping

with cash have been reported in the City. In a few instances, burglars have cartedaway an entire machine.

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Most of the thefts have occurred at unguarded ATM ioss located in secludedplaces without proper police patrolling.

1. A security guard at an ATM belonging to !an of India in "oysala Nagar said,

#$e are not given any e%uipment to protect ourselves, or the machine. $hen we are

attaced, there is no one to help us immediately.&

#Moreover, it is difficult for us to safeguard ATMs in secluded areas, not only at night

but also during day. It is an easy target for robbers to attac guards and ATMs in

areas where there is not much movement of people or vehicles,& he said.

2.'ome of the ATMs also serve as night shelters. According to a police officer at

!yappanhalli, people residing in nearby slums convert ATM rooms into bedrooms at

night. The air-conditioner maes it cosier. #$e have a tough time chasing away

these people who sleep in ATMs,& the officer said.

3.(eople who withdraw cash from ATMs during night are at great ris. 'ree

)anesh, who was attaced while withdrawing cash from an ATM on Marathahalli

*ing *oad, said, #$hen I was attaced by a few people after withdrawing cash from

the ATM at night, there was no sight of the security guard. A few days later, I

discovered the guard was also part of the gang that attaced me.&

4.Most of the ATMs have security guards appointed by bans. +nly a few bans

can afford to appoint e-servicemen as guards because only they have the licence to

carry a gun. !ut other bans give contract to private security agencies. #A maority of

the guards are not trained or e%uipped,& said a ban manager.

5.*e%uesting anonymity, he said most of the bans were not bothered to deploy a

guard because they can always claim the robbed money through insurance.

What are the Types of atm thefts...?

1. ATM DEPOST !"A#Dis a common occurrence that targets a ban and the

victim. The thieves open new ATM accounts at a ban, then tae the newly

ac%uired ATM card and mae fraudulent deposits mostly on /riday nights

after the ban closes0 with fraudulent checs that cannot be processed untilthe following Monday. Then on 'aturday morning, the thief withdraws cash for

the deposited checs nowing that the chec will bounce.

2.$A"D %THHO&DNGis a crime that re%uires a lot of social engineering,

and a 1spotter2 to gain the two items necessary to defraud the consumer3 their

ATM card, and (IN. The thieves usually use something to am an

unsuspecting customer2s card in the ATM machine then try to 1help2 their

victim remove the card. After several failed attempts, they sympathi4e with the

target, and even suggest they type their (IN in several times in the hopes that

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the ATM will release the card. $hile this is happening, an accomplice the

spotter0 is nearby to see the (IN being entered. After the frustrated victim

leaves without the card, the thieves use a nail file to etract the card, and

withdraw cash using the (IN they ust observed.

3.PHSHNG is another more sophisticated crime used a /uitsu model 5676

automated teller machine in the !ucland "ills Mall in "artford, Connecticut.

The criminals installed a specially programmed machine in the mall to record

the card information, collect the (INs from the unsuspecting customers, and

let the system inform them that the transaction they re%uested could not be

processed. 8ays later, the gang collected the information and made bogus

ATM card which were then used to withdraw money from the victim2saccounts from ATMs.

4'S(MMNGA more recent vulnerability although not widespread at this time

is a techni%ue called simming. The crime uses a blac bo the si4e of a (alm

(ilot, with a slit down the front and bits of 9elcro tape on the bac. Called a

:simmer,: the device can read and store the data embedded within a charge

card;s magnetic stripe < not only the name, number and epiration date that

appear on the card;s face but also an invisible, encrypted verification code

that is transmitted electronically from merchant to card issuer to confirm a

card;s validity at the point of sale.

What is being done to reduce this menace?

Teenager de)elo*+ a** that thart+ ATM the-t+!y 'ridhar 9ivan, !angalore Mirror !ureau = Nov >, 76?@, 6?.66 AM I'T

1.Sudhanshu Nath Mishra's Android application involves installing two

smartphones which will alert police and bank officials the moment an ATM is

being broken into

'udhanshu Nath Mishra, who has ust passed out of 'td II from ABC' MagnoliaMaaruti (ublic 'chool, has developed an Android application that will not only

alert ban authorities and the police the moment an ATM is being broen into, butwill also pinpoint the eact location of the machine in case the robbers manage to

flee with it.

2.!iometrics devices have been available for over a decade, and the cost of thetechnology has significantly dropped over the years. Companies lie 'ensar

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Corp now Identi Technologies0 are using biometrics devices to authenticate

customers by iris scans at ATMs in Burope.

3.ATM Thefts3 "C Missive to )overnment, '!I

$ith incidents of ATM thefts and fraudulent withdrawals assuming alarming

proportions across the 'tate, the +rissa "igh Court on Tuesday issued a notice to

the 'tate )overnment and 'tate !an of India'!I0.

Acting on a (I filed by city-based organisation egal 'upport and 'ocial Action

B''A0 seeing directives to the bans, particularly '!I, to tae steps to prevent

ATM thefts, the division bench of Chief Dustice AE )oel and Dustice AE *atha have

ordered the opposite parties to file responses within two wees.

4.Another security measure that is effective in alerting the police of an ATM robberyare the use of software such as Fi-Cubed2s 'afety(IN product. The 'afety(IN

system, when implemented at a ban, will allow a customer who may be in the

middle of a robbery to discreetly alert the police by using a secondary (IN. The

alternate (IN will still authori4e the ATM to dispense cash, but the system will alert

the police and direct them to the ATM centre where the suspect robbery is occurring.