Don’t be a victim of ATM scams this Christmas Month

Bank card scams are likely to rise in festive season. Be safe with these tips.

December 13, 2017

Caxton Central 1 minute read

Be warned about bank scams at ATM’s. Most people have fallen victim to bank scams because of not adhering to precautionary bank rules.

To help you stay aware, below are some of the tricks that criminals use to distract you:

They will be in the queue then pretend to be withdrawing money from the ATM, thereafter they will then leave the receipts hanging.
While you’re busy entering your PIN they will come and request to take their slip, during that process they will cancel your transaction and you will get another card which is similar to yours but it is not yours at all. They will then quickly rush to another ATM and withdraw your money.
In this case, old people are mostly targeted. They will try to assist you with the ATM, then request you to enter your PIN, thereafter they will quickly swap your card and go with your original to withdraw money somewhere else.
Sometimes they use fake machine pads which are placed on top of the original machine pad, these fake machine pads will capture your PIN while you’re busy on the ATM.

Also Read: Festive fraud alert for Tzaneen

Do’s and don’ts at the ATM

Do not allow anyone to distract you while on the ATM.
Do allow anyone to assist you while you’re busy.
If you suspect that someone wants to swap your card or wants to see your PIN, shout loud for people around you to assist you.
Always have on your cell phone and your bank 0800 …….. Number, where you can call and cancel your card and if you suspect something strange phone immediately and stop the card.

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December 13, 2017

Caxton Central 1 minute read

Emelda Tintswalo Shipalana

Tintswalo Shipalana, a journalist for the Letaba Herald, has been in the media industry for over a decade. She started her journey in radio, but ended up in print which is her first love. She joined the Herald newspaper as a cadet in 2016, where she graduated with a journalism qualification from the Caxton Training Academy. She also has a qualification in Feature Writing from the University of Cape Town and a Media Management qualification from Wits University. She is completing her BA Communication Science degree with UNISA. She sleeps well at night knowing she is a voice to the voiceless and her work contributes to promoting local talent, businesses and service delivery. Her love for her community keeps her working hard every day.