Legitimate businesses create video ads to promote their products, so why shouldn’t companies that can provide you with the supplies to commit crimes? Here are some videos where sellers of the tools of the ATM skimmer trade show off how their products work, in case you’ve always wondered how to insert and remove a super-thin ATM skimmer.
The ever-awesome Krebs on Security obtained some videos from security experts of skimmer sellers showing off their wares to potential customers. From the videos, we learn that This type of skimmer slides in the card reader, and is invisible to anyone using the ATM.
The thief will also need a device to harvest customer PINs, which could be a tiny camera somewhere on the outside of the ATM, or an overlay that sits on top of the PIN pad and collects numbers as customers type them in. You can see video captured from a separate device like that in a recent post.
In this video, you see the special tools that come with a skimmer that are used to insert it and remove it. Then the seller manually inserts and rejects the card to show you how the skimmer stays in place even as the ATM goes about its business.
Also, you learn that “The Chicken Dance” is apparently a valid ringtone choice in the criminal underworld.
Here’s a skimmer being removed from a real ATM out in the wild, using what looks like a special magnetic-stripe card and a tool that looks something like a flathead screwdriver.
The best way to protect yourself against ATM skimmers is to cover your hand while you type in your PIN: without it, scammers won’t be able to drain your checking account of cash. It’s not foolproof, which is why you should check for temporary overlays on the PIN pad or anything else that doesn’t look right when you withdraw cash, but it will protect you from the more common pinhole camera version.
ATM Insert Skimmers In Action [Krebs on Security]
by Laura Northrup via Consumerist
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