The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has issued a warning about a new method of financial fraud involving ATM card swapping. Fraudsters, in the guise of assisting confused bank customers at ATM points, swap their cards quickly, memorizing the PIN used in trying the fake cards. The victim’s card gets stuck in the machine, and the fraudster abandons them, making away with the card to withdraw funds.
This fraudulent practice occurs at various service delivery points like Point of Sale (POS) terminals and ATMs. To prevent such fraud, the EFCC recommends keeping cards in sight, regularly checking bank statements, setting transaction alerts, covering the keypad when entering PINs, not rushing transactions, seeking assistance only from bank officials, and promptly blocking cards in case of issues. Additionally, the EFCC provides a USSD code (966911#) for instant ATM card blocking.
