Gang targets ATM users in Gurgaon

The next time you go to withdraw money from an ATM and have some difficulty punching in and the person behind you offers help, beware. Do not give out your password in any circumstance as you might just be falling for a con job. Sanjeev K Ahuja reports.

The next time you go to withdraw money from an ATM and have some difficulty punching in and the person behind you offers help, beware. Do not give out your password in any circumstance as you might just be falling for a con job.

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The Gurgaon police claims to have zeroed in on a gang that targets ATMs and withdraws cash fraudulently by jamming keypads of machines using a special adhesive. One of the accused was recently arrested for fooling and stealing R10,000 from the ATM of State Bank of India at Mini Secretariat.

“The gang members spill the adhesive and wait for a customer who tries hard to punch in his PIN number. One of the scamsters, in the guise of a fellow customer, would offer to help and ask for the secret password,” investigating officer Devender Kumar said.

The officer added that the gangster would pretend to be attempting in vain and the customer would leave in a while. The thieves would ensure that the person doesn’t log out completely. As soon as the person leaves, the conman would remove the adhesive and withdraw money using the person’s PIN number. The gang had also withdrawn R40,000 from numerous accounts at another SBI branch ATM using the same modus operandi.

The police have also collected CCTV footages from various ATMs in the city and officials say some gangsters have even been identified. SBI officials, meanwhile, refused to comment and said they had filed an FIR.