The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has alerted Nigerians about the Automated Teller Machine (ATM) Debit Card swapping fraud.
The commission, through Dele Oyewale, Head, Media and Publicity stated in a statement that after some investigations, the commission found that such withdrawals are linked to ATMs, Point of Sale (PoS) debit card swapping, or fraud.
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The ATM swapping scam involves criminals physically replacing authentic ATMs with counterfeit machines designed to capture sensitive information from users.
These criminals often target high-traffic areas such as shopping centers, gas stations, and busy urban locations where people are likely to use ATMs regularly.
The process typically begins with criminals surveying potential locations to identify ATMs with minimal security measures. Once a target is selected, they use various methods to gain access to the ATM, including tampering with locks or exploiting vulnerabilities in the machine’s security features.
Once the criminals have gained access to the ATM, they replace it with a counterfeit machine equipped with card skimmers and cameras.
These devices are designed to capture the user’s card information and record their PIN as they enter it. The criminals then retrieve the fraudulent machine at a later time, along with the stolen data.
On July 6, 2023, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps in Kwara State Command confirmed the arrest of a fraudster, Babatunde Adekunle, for swapping the Automated Teller Machine card of an old man and using the card to withdraw N1.8 million from the man’s account.
Also, on May 24th, 2023, the police in Enugu State, south-east Nigeria, reportedly arraigned four individuals, including a mother of four. The group is accused of engaging in ATM card-swapping, allegedly withdrawing N495,000 from a victim’s bank account within the state.
However, to protect yourself from these scams, the commission noted some preventive measures to follow.
1. Cards should be kept in sight or in a safe place. Whenever you get your card back after making any payment, make sure it is actually your card and not just one that looks similar.
2. Regularly check your bank statements for any unknown transaction.
3. Set transaction alerts to monitor any activity on your accounts or with your bank card.
4. Cover the keypad with your hand or body when entering your PIN at POS terminal/ATM machines.
5. Do not be in a rush to make payments or withdrawals, and request assistance only from officials of the bank.
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6. Call your banks to block your ATM cards immediately when your cards are stuck in the ATM machines or whenever you observe any irregularity.
7. Ensure you know your bank’s ATM offline blocking code and quickly use it whenever it is misplaced or stolen.
8. Dial the USSD code *966*911# and follow the pop-up instructions to block your ATM card instantly.
