Be aware! Your ATM card may be cloned

NEXT TIME, when you go to an ATM centre to withdraw cash, be careful. Someone might steal your ATM card number and PIN while you push the card inside the ATM and type your PIN.
The next thing that may hit you is your ATM account balance showing withdrawals far in excess of the actual withdrawal made by you. Senior bureaucrats have reported such frauds and the fear is that smart criminals may force you to spend sleepless nights. An e-mail that is being circulated across by well meaning people shows this trend that is also corroborated by the Special Task Force (STF) and other cops.

When you visit an ATM centre, you pay more attention to cash. But criminals sitting near the ATM centre are watching something else: Your credit card details. While you type in your details, the criminals receive it too. The information is transmitted through an equipment they install on the front of the ATM centre.

If you spot an unusual attachment to front of the ATM centre, do not use the card and report it to the bank. The equipment used to capture your ATM card number and PIN looks like normal ATM equipment. A ‘skimmer’ put in front of the normal ATM card slot reads the card number and transmits it to the criminals sitting in a car. A wireless camera that looks like a leaflet holder is kept to view ATM PIN entries. The thieves copy the cards and use the PIN numbers to withdraw money.

“It’s possible that the criminals arrested on Sunday may have transferred credit card data of several foreign nationals in this fashion,” SSP STF, SK Bhagat told HT after the arrests. Now, the question is how to make payment safely after a purchase. “Not many would know that while making a payment through the Internet, it’s always safer to use the credit card than a debit card.”

“Credit card is safer because if you are charged for something that you have not purchased, you can always refuse to make the payment,” says Anil Agarwal, a senior IPS officer.

Also, keep an eye on the shop owner who swipes your card after you have made the purchases. Your card is swiped across a machine that is provided to them by the banks. Watch if your card is swiped twice in two different machines one of which could be a ‘skimmer’ or a ‘cloning’ machine.