EFCC cautions Nigerians about ATM swap fraud

Nigerians should be alert for ATM switch scammers, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has warned, noting an increase in reports on the crime.

The suggestion was made public on Tuesday by Mr. Dele Oyewale, Head of Media and Publicity at the EFCC.

Oyewale claims that during the Commission’s investigations, fraudulent activities or ATM Debit Card swapping have been connected to unauthorised withdrawals from clients’ bank accounts.

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He said that the thieves used a technique that involved keeping a debit card from the same bank and swapping it at any ATM while posing as a helper to a confused bank customer.

“They switch the card so quickly that the customer doesn’t notice and simultaneously commits the pin used to attempt the phoney cards to memory.

The fraudster promptly leaves the victim, telling him or her to report the incident to the bank while stealing the victim’s card and using it to make instant withdrawals from the account when these cards become stuck in the machine since the pin was entered incorrectly.

According to Oyewale, “this card swapping usually occurs in any service delivery point, such as Point of Sale (POS) terminals and ATM points, among others.”