ATM fraud in South Africa, don’t become a victim

ATMs are used daily by millions of South Africans and unfortunately there are those few who find themselves robbed of their hard earned money at ATMs. ATMs have been a part of our lives for over three decades and over the years have been improved drastically. The sad part is scammers have also upped their game and keep finding more ways to scam innocent and unsuspecting people.
These days ATMs can do just about anything that can be done inside a bank, so naturally they are preferred by people as compared to queuing inside a branch and going over your lunch hour. Scammers use this opportunity to defraud people through scams such as card skimming; card swopping, card trapping and ATM shoulder surfing.

It is important not to accept assistance from anyone and to keep your pin protected at all times. If you don’t feel comfortable at an ATM or you are unfamiliar with the area then rather don’t use it. With technology playing a major par in our lives, most banks have come to recognise that. So make use of services such as e-wallet, instant money and cash send so if you need the money urgently it is safer to send the amount to your cell phone then you can withdraw that.

ATM tips

There are other ways to ensure that you don’t become a victim of ATM fraud. Have your card ready when you go to withdraw, stay away from ATMs that look damaged or tampered with, cancel the transaction if the ATM seems to not work properly. It is also important to keep the help line handy in case you will need it. Don’t rush yourself at an ATM, once your money and card are safe in your wallet then you can leave the ATM without inviting any suspicious people.