Use an ATM? Beware of attachments! More cases of fraud

Lower Silesian police:

People who want to rob us of our savings have no scruples in pursuing their goal. They will find ways to rob us in the least expected circumstances.

An example of such an action is modifying an ATM so that a customer wishing to withdraw their funds believes that, if the cash withdrawal is unsuccessful, the money has not left the device at all and the account has not been charged.

In several cases recorded in our voivodeship, perpetrators modified ATMs so that they did not dispense money. They then watched the entire situation, waiting for someone wishing to withdraw cash.

Having not received their money, the victims would leave the device a moment later, confused. The criminals would then approach the ATM and remove the banknotes it had retained.

What can you do to avoid being robbed?

• To reduce the risk of losing our savings, when withdrawing them we should pay attention to several details concerning the operation and appearance of the ATM.
• Before withdrawing cash, we should check whether there are any attached elements protruding beyond the casing at the point where the cash is dispensed, such as attachments.
• Whenever possible, we should make withdrawals from ATMs located at bank branches or in places with continuous monitoring. If we have any doubts about the course of the transaction, we should immediately notify the bank.
• If we become certain that we have been robbed, we should contact the police.

Sometimes an ATM's failure to dispense cash may result from a device malfunction. However, when such a situation occurs, we should take a closer look at its details and, depending on what we observe, notify the financial institution and the relevant services.

We should regularly verify the number of transactions carried out on our accounts and check whether we recognize all of them and whether they were actually completed successfully.