Tag Archives: insert skimmer

Insert Skimmer + Camera Cover PIN Stealer

March 10, 2019
61 Comments

Very often the most clever component of your typical ATM skimming attack is the hidden pinhole camera used to record customers entering their PINs. These little video bandits can be hidden 100 different ways, but they’re frequently disguised as ATM security features — such as an extra PIN pad privacy cover, or an all-in-one skimmer over the green flashing card acceptance slot at the ATM.

And sometimes, the scammers just hijack the security camera built into the ATM itself.

Thieves Used Infrared to Pull Data from ATM ‘Insert Skimmers’

July 13, 2017
47 Comments

A greater number of ATM skimming incidents now involve so-called “insert skimmers,” wafer-thin fraud devices made to fit snugly and invisibly inside a cash machine’s card acceptance slot. New evidence suggests that at least some of these insert skimmers — which record card data and store it on a tiny embedded flash drive are — equipped with technology allowing it to transmit stolen card data wirelessly via infrared, the same technology built into a television remote control.

ATM Insert Skimmers: A Closer Look

November 27, 2016
49 Comments

KrebsOnSecurity has featured multiple stories about the threat from ATM fraud devices known as “insert skimmers,” wafer-thin data theft tools made to be completely hidden inside of a cash’s machine’s card acceptance slot. For a closer look at how stealthy insert skimmers can be, it helps to see videos of these things being installed and removed. Here’s a look at promotional sales videos produced by two different ATM insert skimmer peddlers.

ATM Insert Skimmers In Action

June 13, 2016
61 Comments

KrebsOnSecurity has featured several recent posts on “insert skimmers,” ATM skimming devices made to fit snugly and invisibly inside a cash machine’s card acceptance slot. I’m revisiting the subject again because I’ve recently acquired how-to videos produced by two different insert skimmer peddlers, and these silent movies show a great deal more than words can tell about how insert skimmers do their dirty work.

More ATM “Insert Skimmer” Innovations

September 3, 2015
51 Comments

Most of us know to keep our guard up when withdrawing cash from an ATM and to look for any signs that the machine may have been tampered with. But ATM fraud experts say they continue to see criminal innovations with “insert skimmers,” wafer-thin data theft devices that fit inside the ATM’s card acceptance slot and do not alter the outward appearance of a compromised cash machine.

Skimmer Innovation: ‘Wiretapping’ ATMs

November 26, 2014
50 Comments

Banks in Europe are warning about the emergence of a rare form of ATM skimmer involving a wire-like device that is inserted through a tiny hole cut in the cash machine’s front. The hole is covered up by a fake decal, and the thieves somehow attach the device to the place inside the ATM where the customer’s card is inserted.

Stealthy, Razor Thin ATM Insert Skimmers

August 21, 2014
88 Comments

An increasing number of ATM skimmers targeting banks and consumers appear to be of the razor-thin insert variety. These card-skimming devices are made to fit snugly and invisibly inside the throat of the card acceptance slot. Here’s a look at a stealthy new model of insert skimmer pulled from a cash machine in southern Europe just this past week.