We hear about these from time to time, sure.
But in this case, we gained some insights into how a now busted ATM skimming operation worked.
European crime-fighting agency Europol announced the bust which involved several countries and an island nation. They arrested ringleaders, brought in over 1,000 fake ATM cards and hauled in a bunch of Euros.
Of greater interest, however, is the coordination required to make this type of criminal operation work. Here are the bullet points:
- Criminals place technical equipment on ATMs in the central areas of European cities
- They used two types of skimming devices: micro cameras and magnetic strip readers
- Criminals capture this digital information and produce fake ATM cards
- ATM cards are placed in the hands of criminals outside of Europe
- These criminals made large ATM withdrawals in Belize, Indonesia, and Jamaica
And speaking of Jamaica, apparently, it is getting tired of being a hotbed for cashing out with stolen ATM cards. It recently refused entry for two men known to police as ATM scammers:
"In recent months, members of a Romanian criminal network have been fleecing millions of dollars from the accounts of individuals at ATMs across Jamaica. It has so far been confirmed that more than J$50 million has been stolen by the men," says Jamaican News Online.
So now we know how much work these ATM scamming efforts take. And how lucrative the payday can be.
