THE latest victim was a woman who lost nearly half of all her money in the bank in a fraud committed through an automated teller machine (ATM).
Prior to that, reports of ATM fraud were made to the police in Naga and Cebu cities. The practice of ATM skimming, of stealing bank information by attaching a camera or copying device on the machine, is only expected to increase in frequency and location with the approach of the holiday season and with criminals turning to other illegal ways after selling drugs has become life-threatening for them.
The government’s war against drugs is reportedly forcing criminals to turn to other activities to keep their lifestyles and numerous families and supporters. Some have turned to kidnapping while others have gone the way of stealing via ATM.
A realtor from Naga City reported to police that skimmers took P120,000 and left behind P159,000 in one account, and all P10,000 deposit in her second account. Cebu City Councilor Dave Tumulak had also complained of falling victim to skimming. He said there are 12 other victims in city who were scheduled to join him in a meeting with police and bankers Monday in the hope of putting a stop to the practice.
The public was told that ATMs are equipped with cameras to document the use of the units. But depositors are not warned proactively against using a particular machine on suspicion that a skimming device was attached to it. Video taken by the ATM cameras is usually made public after the fraud has been committed, not as a way to stop more people from being victimized.
In Naga City where several incidents were reported, the bank could have acted fast to stop more people from being robbed of their savings. Instead, more people got to use the same machine and were victimized. Tumulak complained of the slow action of the Land Bank of the Philippines after he discovered the loss of thousands of pesos from his account.
An information drive on precautions to depositors should continue until the threat subsides. Aside from prompt action by banks and early warning to depositors, the police could post personnel near banks with ATM units as a deterrent during this holiday season. If syndicates are involved in the skimming, then the public should be armed with more information.
Congress has been aware of incidence of ATM fraud in the country and conducted investigations. In a 2014 hearing of the House of Representatives’ committees on public order, banks, and trade, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas or central bank downplayed the problem and reported that less than one in 100 Filipinos get victimized by ATM fraud. This made ATM fraud negligible, at 0.07 percent or less than one in every 100 consumers as of 2013. No figures have been released from that year until the present.
Yet the need to strengthen operations against syndicates was also raised in the hearings after foreigners were found involved in the scam but were able to go free because of failure of enforcers to build a case.
Other than public vigilance, police action and monitoring by the banks, legislators should be tapped to study again ATM fraud and protections for depositors, and ways to prosecute those arrested.
The problem of ATM fraud would need a multipronged approach to a solution.
(ninicab@sunstar.com.ph)