Dubai: Three visitors were recently arrested for allegedly forging debit cards after gathering data by using sophisticated equipment installed at ATM machines.
Brigadier Khalil Ebrahim Al Mansouri, Director of the criminal investigation department (CID) at Dubai Police, said the visitors entered the country many times and committed this crime in a number of emirates including Dubai.
They were arrested in a hotel apartment after they were monitored for several hours, said Lieutenant Colonel Ahmad Humaid Al Merri, Director of the crime investigation division within Dubai Police.
More than Dh1 million was stolen from people's accounts with many cases reported to Sharjah and Dubai police.
"We received information about a gang arriving soon in Dubai and which intends to carry out a robbery. They were monitored ... while they are carrying out their operations at commercial banks," he said.
Camouflaged
The suspects would place a card reader [scanner] that is shaped like the card entry portal at any ATM machine. This machine scans the card to collect information such as the card number. Another camouflaged piece is placed on the right side of the ATM, which overlooks the keyboard. This equipment records video images of PIN number being entered. The piece has tiny holes to capture the video, said Lt Col Al Merri in an interview with Gulf News.
He didn't specify the number of reports made to Dubai Police or other emirates but said the suspects confessed to their previous attempts.
"They would download the information and footage they have collected from ATM machines into a laptop; then they start to create new debit cards with details they have captured. The video image provides them the PIN number and in some cases the pin number was written on the debit card itself," he said.
Lt Col Al Merri advises the public to always cover the keyboard when typing the pin number and to avoid writing "the PIN number on debit cards."
