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Print this article | Close this window New warning on ATM fraud November 12 2002 A sophisticated scam targeting automatic teller machines in Sydney could spread right across Australia, NSW police warned today. Fraudsters, possibly part of an organised crime ring, hit four ATMs over the weekend and stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from bank customers. Police say the thieves attach an external "skimming" device to the ATM which reads and stores information from the magnetic stripe on customers' cards. That information is then transferred to other cards and together with the stolen PIN code, the criminals "spend people's money", said Detective Inspector Michael Gerondis. It was still unclear today how the thieves obtained customer PINs, although Insp Gerondis said it could be as sophisticated as a pinhole camera. Two ATMs on Sydney's Oxford Street, one on Newtown's King Street and one at the beachside suburb of Coogee were hit by the scammers. Consumers around the country were today urged to take particular notice of ATMs when transacting money. "Any bank's ATM is susceptible to this device," Insp Gerondis told reporters today. He said while all four ATMs already affected belonged to the St George banking chain, "every bank has or will be affected by this". Earlier, a St George Bank spokesman said they had identified more than 100 customers from their bank alone who had been ripped off to a tune of well over $100,000. Representatives from Commonwealth Bank of Australia, National Bank of Australia and Westpac said they were working with police to track down customers who had used the four ATMs. All customers would be fully refunded and all banks would be reviewing their security measures, the Australian Banking Association said. "The ABA is always concerned about security issues - after an incident like this, banks review their security and look at whether they can make any improvements," a spokeswoman said. A spokeswoman for NAB said 60 customers had been affected by the scam and had had their accounts frozen to prevent illegal withdrawals. "We have got our own internal teams looking into it, making sure all our security measures are in place in case our ATMs are targeted," she said. Commonwealth said they were appealing to their customers to come forward of they had seen anything untoward. "We take any security matters very seriously, but we have had no reports of any such incidents affecting our telling machines," said a Commonwealth spokesman. Westpac said the impact on its customers had been minimal but was using the incident as an opportunity to review the monitoring of their ATMs. AAP This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/11/12/ 1037080725468.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A<>E<>R + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + Forwarded as information only; I don't believe everything I read or send (but that doesn't stop me from considering it; obviously SOMEBODY thinks it's important) + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is distributed without charge or profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this type of information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + "Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut." --- Ernest Hemingway <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http://archive.jab.org/ctrl@;listserv.aol.com/ <A HREF="http://archive.jab.org/ctrl@;listserv.aol.com/">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
