STRATEGIC PARTNERS
May 8, 2003
BOSTON -- Police are seeking two men suspected of stealing more than $70,000 in an ATM skimming ATM scam, according to a report in the Boston Globe.
The men, who have been captured on surveillance cameras, have allegedly been stealing card information in Massachusetts towns such as Needham and Westwood and then using it to clone cards and withdraw cash at ATMs in Boston.
The scanning device is apparently placed over the machine's card reader. A camera, sometimes enclosed in a black or gray box, is attached above the keypad to record the victims' PINs.
Boston police Deputy Superintendent Joe Driscoll held a May 8 press conference to alert the public to the scheme and to urge them to be aware of anything suspicious.
'If any member of the public enters an ATM and observes anything that looks out of the ordinary or appears to be attached to the ATM, we advise that you do not touch it, that you don't use the machine, and that you call 911 immediately," Driscoll said during the conference.
According to an April 17 report in the Needham (Mass.) Times, Needham police obtained a video of two men attaching a skimming device to an ATM and additional video of the same men withdrawing money from ATMs in Medfield, Medway, Worcester, Boston, Cambridge and other areas.
(See related story Mass. residents nicked for $50,000 by ATM skimming ring)
According to several published reports, there have also been a spate of recent skimming incidents in Chicago and in the Montreal area.
