European Association of Safe Transactions (East) , reports , that in 2022, European banks lost € 211 million due to criminal groups, and the vast majority of losses were on skimming devices installed in ATMs throughout Europe.
east, the sectoral group of banks and suppliers of ATMs also said that losses due to skimming devices at ATMs were only € 140,000. This is the lowest indicator since East began to track such statistics-the number of such attacks decreased by 40%.
The skimming attack also includes the so-called “Black Box Attack” attack. Within the framework of the “black box” attacks, the attacker fixes the external body of the ATM for access to its ports or cuts out a hole in the case for direct access to internal wiring or other hidden connectors. Using these access points, the attacker connects the Black Box device (usually a laptop or Raspberry Pi) to the internal components of the ATM, which are used to send commands and theft of funds.
East emphasizes that most of these attacks have recently been unsuccessful – common losses associated with such incidents amounted to only € 136,000 euros.
Statistics compiled by east
It is quite obvious that skimming cards is a much more important problem. According to East, skimming attacks brought losses of € 167 million
Therefore, people always need to pay attention to skimmers and conduct a quick visual or physical inspection of the ATM before its use. It is especially recommended to take a closer look at the card reading device.
Simmer installed on a card reading device
East is also concerned about physical attacks on ATMs, especially an increase in thefts by undermining ATMs. The number of abductions using explosions and simple destruction of ATMs increased by 16% and 8%, respectively. Despite the fact that measures have already been taken to reduce the risk of such attacks, each attack causes significant damage to equipment and buildings, and may pose a threat to people’s lives.