Feds Bust ATM Scammers

   

Posted: Dec 1, 2009

The Associated Press (AP) reports that federal authorities have broken up a scam involving computer hackers and thefts from ATMs.

In November 2008, the scammers broke in electronically to the debit card payroll information of Atlanta's Royal Bank of Scotland.  Sally Quillian Yates, the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, said the hackers created 44 fake payroll debit accounts, which they then used at 2,100 ATMs across the globe, including a number in the U.S.

According to the report, the hackers managed to steal $9 million over the course of 12 hours.

"Authorities say Sergei Tsurikov, 25, of St. Petersburg, Russia, was in custody but the U.S. attorney's office declined to discuss the whereabouts of the others," the AP report stated.

In all, federal authorities have gotten indictments on eight people from Russia, Estonia and Moldova.

In light of the alleged actions of these types of scams, consumers should make sure they keep their own personal information safe. Personal identification numbers, or PINs, should be kept secret, and people should be wary of phishing scams that try to coax out their private information.