‘THEY’RE NOT ALONE’
A National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) team has found an improvised ATM skimming tool and clone cards in the lockers of 2 out of 3 Romanians arrested in connection with the loss of at least 50 government workers’ pay and savings. They suspect a larger g
What are the signs that a skimming device is attached to an automated teller machine (ATM)?
Look for a small micro camera inside the card reader or observe if something looks inserted in the machine, said Special Investigator III Florante Gaoiran of the National Bureau of Investigation 7.
"It is not noticeable but if you are vigilant enough and suspect that something is inserted in the machine, report it immediately to the bank personnel," he said.
Gaoiran said that the skimming device used by the three Romanian nationals they arrested last Friday were hidden to the point that if you're not the skimmer or the machine technician, you would not notice anything.
With this, the NBI 7 advised banks to speed up the process of replacing all magnetic stripes with Europay MasterCard Visa chip-based cards, which are more secure and give greater protection against unauthorized withdrawals.
BDO victimized
This was what LandBank of the Philippine (LBP) promised it would do in May for all its depositors in a press release.
"They should put additional security measures to their cards like a notice to the depositors that they made this transaction or more stricter system during withdrawals," Gaoiran said.
He encouraged banks that believe a skimming device has been installed in their ATMs to visit their office.
Recently, the Banco De Oro (BDO) also reported skimming incidents in their ATM machines in different areas, an ABS-CBN report said.
In an official statement, BDO said it has identified ATM debit cards, which might have been compromised.
"These cards are now being replaced and can no longer be used for transactions. We apologize for any inconvenience that this activity might have caused our cardholders," the advisory said. "Rest assured this was done in the interest of preventing unauthorized access to their accounts," the bank added.