A Virus at the ATM?

This is not about catching H1N1 from the person in front of you.

Some ATMs can be hacked and infected with a nasty program that doles out sensitive information. The program allows scammers to get a printout of all cards used at the ATM, along with PIN numbers and other useful information.

Unfortunately, this malware is hard to detect. Unlike ATM skimmers, which you can see on the outside of an ATM, the programs run on the operating system inside the machine. So far they have not shown up in the USA, but they probably will soon.

What can you do? Keep an eye on your bank accounts. Log in from time to time to look for any suspicious activity. Notify your bank of any problems immediately - the sooner you act the better your chances of avoiding losses and overdraft problems.

You should also stick to ATMs that are inside bank lobbies or otherwise under surveillance. This doesn't guarantee safety, but it improves your chances.

Further reading:

• Cash machines hacked to spew out card details [via Cosumerist]
• How Skimming Scams Work