HA! TORONTO - Police in Mississauga have put out an ATM alert.They say someone has tampered with some bank machines, allowing them to withdraw money from bank accounts.
Police say the device causes the bank machine to tell customers it is out of order after they put in their card. They say that's when the thief offers to help.
He or she approaches with advice that the card will come out after the customer enters his or her PIN number several times.That's how the thief gets the secret code.
When the card does not eject, the customer leaves, thinking the card is safe inside the machine.
But the thief has placed some kind of device to prevent the card from entering all the way into the machine and allowing him or her to then retrieve the card.
Since he or she has the PIN, the theif can withdraw money from the account after the customer has left and use it to make debit purchases until the card is cancelled or the account drained.
ATM customers are being reminded to take precautions against exposing their pin number and to report all stolen or lost cards - even when they appear to be lost inside the machine - to their bank.
