Foreigners blamed for T&T ATM fraud

(Trinidad Express) Conmen from outside of the country are involved in the debit and credit card fraud that affected commercial banks’ Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs) in the country last week, banking sources said yesterday.
Over several days last week, ATM users were targeted by thieves who used technology to capture information from their cards after which they made copies of the cards and used them at other ATM machines to withdraw money from customers’ bank accounts.
First Citizens, Scotiabank and RBC Royal bank all opened branches yesterday in central Trinidad to replace customers cards which were disabled after the banks found out about the type of fraud used (called skimming).
Banking sources confirmed to the Sunday Express that investigators were looking at a regional, and possibly an international link to the crime in Trinidad and Tobago last week.
Reached for comment yesterday, president of the Bankers’ Association, Richard Young, yesterday suggested the masterminds involved in the scam may be foreign-based.
“My broad sense in talking to the security people suggests that it may be regional people. … But you never know because this thing is a worldwide thing, importing technology from away or being guided by the people from away,” Young said in a telephone interview with the Sunday Express.
The process called “skimming” uses hidden cameras to capture the personal identification numbers of customer’s debit and credit cards as they use them at automatic teller machines (ATMs).
The Bankers Association said it became aware of the scam “over the last few days”.
Young yesterday said the bank started contacting customers since mid-week but with some numbers not being updated, they have been facing a problem.