Vol.7 No.24 ! 1 - 15 September 2008
PATTAYA TODAY 1
Volume 7, Issue 24
1 - 15 September 2008
25 BAHT
Beware of ATM Scams Protect your PIN number
Almost all ATM transactions are safe but a minority are crimes
FOLLOWING a spate of complaints about people losing their private credit card information to skimmers and scammers, police and banks are urging Pattaya locals and visitors to take extra precautions. Several Bangkok embassies too report their nationals in distress after finding someone has managed to use a cloned card to make a big profit. Some of the reported thefts of data seem to be amateurish. The criminal stands in line
behind you and observes over your shoulder the numbers which you type in to get your cash. In a variation, the data thief stole a real credit card, followed the victim home and later phoned him, posing as a bank official, asking him to verify his PIN number! In what’s known as skimming, the criminal attaches a fake, custom made transparent cover to the front of the ATM, or a very thin device that sits inside the slot itself, which
records the magnetic strip of cards as they are being inserted. To the side of the ATM they attach a plastic box with flyers from the bank to give a legitimate appearance. But hidden in the base is a very tiny camera filming the keyboard as people enter their PINS. This kind of criminal action is popular when banks are closed, especially evenings and weekends when customers tend to be less observant. “Fraud is a fact of life in this industry and it’s something we have been fighting for 20 years,” said Kurt Helwig of the Electronic Funds Transfer
Association. Several Pattaya residents have complained to their banks that they can no longer use their credit cards as all transactions have been officially blocked after unsuccessful attempts by data thieves to insert a slightly wrong PIN number into ATM machines. There are a number of essential things for ATM customers to do according to a spokesman for Siam bank. Firstly you must protect your card number and PIN from prying eyes by blocking anyone’s view behind or near you. In particular, confidentiality of the PIN is essential since skimmers need it to be successful. Continued on page 4
Tram project eyed for Pattaya AS the city’s traffic problems grow worse, city fathers are conducting an investigation into a possible tram project for the city. They gave a warm welcome to Mr Jaruek Anuphong and his thirty colleagues from the senate transport commission who arrived on August 20 for a
feasibility study. The resort’s main problem, it was surmised, is that the amount of traffic on the main roads doubles at weekends and public holidays. An earlier suggestion had been to build underground tunnels on Sukhumvit road to alleviate the snarlups and such a
plan was still under planning consideration without a final decision. Several European cities, including Manchester, have long introduced tram transportation to alleviate jams and for environmental reasons too. Continued on page 4