Careless use of ATM facility could prove harmful

Criminals are waiting to steal your bank details by placing hidden cameras in the ATM booths. They also clone your credit/debit cards or just by offering help they exchange the original card with a fake one and withdraw money illegally from your bank account.

Chandigarh: In a fast-paced life, people generally don't go to banks to withdraw money from their accounts but use ATM services for all sorts of transactions.

One ends up saving a lot of time and energy as transactions done through ATMs are quite convenient.

However, usage of ATMs, which has become an integral part of our life, could be dangerous if we do not take the required care.

Criminals are waiting to steal your bank details by placing hidden cameras in the ATM booths. They also clone your credit/debit cards or just by offering help they exchange the original card with a fake one and withdraw money illegally from your bank account.

Rajesh Rana, a cyber expert, told ETV Bharat here that in case of the customer using an electronic device to get his/her debit/credit card swiped and it doesn't work even after three attempts, it could be an indication that there's a problem and someone might be trying to steal information from your card.

Rana says the criminals would generally install a card scanner in the ATM and it would the card as soon you insert it in the machine. Every detail of your card, including CVV number and card number, would be captured by the scanner. Following which an identical known as clone card can be prepared, using which the criminal could withdraw your hard-earned money.

The criminals also install hidden cameras to record your PIN, warns Rana, saying that one should check if the slot where the card is inserted is loose. He says people must stay alert and try to use ATMs which have security guards as they are safer in comparison to the ones without them.

Also, the customer should check if a tiny light, placed on the right side of is working or not, in case not, they must not use the machine.

The expert suggests that people must take care while punching in their PIN number as there could be a hidden camera.

He also suggested that credit/debit card PIN should be changed frequently to ensure that nobody other than you has it.