Phishing / Processor Compromise / Cash Out

Two Romanian nationals, and one Nigerian national were sentenced in the UK to a total of 21 years prison following a joint UK / US/ French investigation into large scale phishing attacks targeting bank accounts. Servers controlled by the group contained 30,000 customers’ bank details and 70 million email addresses. Victims included bank customers from UK, US, China and Russia. Eight suspects were charged in the US following the theft of $15 million using compromised prepaid cards.

Cash Trapping / Card Trapping / Distraction

UK banking industry body, Financial Fraud Action UK reported (statistics) that ATM fraud increased to 7,525 cases reported in the first four months of 2013 compared with 2,553 for the same period last year. Incidents included distraction, shoulder surfing, card theft as well as a reduced level of ATM skimming. Cash trapping and card trapping were most prevalent in Europe during June. In Indonesia, card trapping using a match stick to jam the card was reported. Card swapping was reported in Zimbabwe and India.

ATM Skimming / Skimming / EFTPOS Compromise

The ring leader of an ATM skimming gang was sentenced in the US to almost seven years prison and ordered to pay $30,000 in restitution. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy and aggravated identity theft. Statistics released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) showed that credit card fraud (including ATM skimming) increased by almost 20% in the last three months of 2012 and the value of the fraud almost doubled to INR 94.9 million in the same period. The RBI have issued a directive for banks to migrate to EMV chip cards. Police in India have requested assistance from Bulgarian officials following ATM skimming incidents. Six Taiwanese nationals were arrested in the Philippines on suspicion of fraud spend at ATMs using cards that had been skimmed. Lobby door access skimming was reported in the US.

Ram Raid Attacks / Theft of ATM / Smash-and-Grab / Theft from ATM

A female was sentenced to 23 months prison in the US for the theft of an ATM. Two men were jailed for five years and five and a half years in the UK for a failed ram raid using a stolen sewage tanker. An ATM which was apparently not correctly bolted to the ground was stolen by six suspects in India. In the US there were numerous reports of ram raids and theft of ATMs during June. In one failed attack, over $20,000 of damage was caused. A notorious gang in Malaysia were arrested following a failed attempt to remove an ATM with a chain. The chain broke during the attempt. A digger was used to steal an ATM in the UK. The last of 16 suspects pleaded guilty and were sentenced in the USA following a six year investigation into theft from ATMs. The gang’s modus operandi included sabotaging alarm systems and using cutting tools to attack ATMs.  A cutting torch was used to attack an ATM in Malaysia however there was no access to the cash. Prior to the attack, internal and external CCTV cameras were redirected or covered with tape.

Explosive Attacks

The use of explosives, both explosive gas and solid explosives continued in Europe and South Africa during June. A security guard was shot and wounded during an ATM bombing attack in South Africa.

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The above digest is provided by DFR Risk Management, who provide consultancy services advising ATM and self-service terminal deployers and manufacturers, as well as law-enforcement agencies, on how to manage ATM and self-service terminal fraud and security threats.