HIGH banking
ATM skimmer + pinhole camera clones your card and PIN
A skimmer fitted over the ATM card slot reads your card data while a pinhole camera or fake keypad overlay captures your PIN. Hours later, money is withdrawn from another city's ATM. Cover the keypad and prefer in-branch ATMs.
Also known as: ATM skimming, card cloning at ATM, ATM card fraud, deep insert skimmer, ATM PIN theft
What to do right now
- 1 Wiggle the card slot before inserting — if anything moves or detaches, walk away and report to the bank
- 2 Always cover the keypad with your other hand while entering PIN — defeats overhead pinhole cameras
- 3 Prefer in-branch ATMs during banking hours over standalone street kiosks
- 4 Enable SMS alerts for every card transaction, even ₹1, so cloning shows up immediately
- 5 If money is debited fraudulently, call your bank's card-block helpline within 24 hours — RBI rules cap your liability if reported in time
- 6 File an FIR at the nearest police station and keep a copy for the bank's chargeback claim
- 7 Report at https://cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930 (national cyber helpline).
Red flags
- ⚠ Card slot housing feels loose, sticky, or wobbles when you touch it before inserting
- ⚠ Keypad feels spongy, raised, or oddly thick — could be an overlay over the real keys
- ⚠ A small extra device or unusual brochure holder is fixed near the screen at PIN-entry height
- ⚠ Your card is debited at an ATM in a city you have not visited
- ⚠ Multiple withdrawals of ₹10,000 each (per-transaction limit) appear within minutes of each other
- ⚠ A stranger lingers at the ATM lobby offering 'help' with a stuck card