Beware of email-frauds

We all get a number of mails asking for help in transferring their millions of dollars to India - showing an opportunity for earning huge commissions. These mails that usually are from Nigeria or other African countries asking for help by using your bank account for the funds transfer. Every week we also win million of dollars in lotteries. Internet servers mark these messages (and we should regard too as) spam.

However, there is a new turn to these mails. Now to show authenticity, they are using the name of India's central bank, the RBI, into the picture. They claim that huge sums of money for disbursal of loans in India at cheap rates have been kept in an account with the Reserve Bank. In these lines, the RBI has 'refuted' these claims and has cautioned the general public against following prey to these fake e-mails.

Who's guarding your ATM?

ATMs are now the most used touch-point between the bank and the customer. The security measures at an ATM are far lesser than that found at a bank branch. ATMs are equipped with either a camera or a watchman, and rarely both, let alone any additional measures. This brings us to the question, that as an individual, is transacting at ATMs really secure?

Complex frauds like card swapping and card jamming are unheard of in India. The first few things that come to the mind on ATM frauds are card theft, PIN theft and mugging.

Unlike in case of credit cards, ATMs need a two factor authentication (1: the card, and 2: the PIN or any biometric identification) to operate. A two factor authentication is necessary for added security. PIN thefts are formed mostly out of customers casually disclosing the said code to, say, drivers or relatives to withdraw money for them. The bank pretty much cannot control these factors - these are left for the consumer to handle. Banknet's Report on the Indian ATM Industry has mentioned a few tips on how to prevent such frauds and other precautionary measures to be taken while at an ATM.

Still, robbing or mugging leaves some fraud issues unanswered. Hiring guards has been generating controversy. It is observed that customers usually ask these guards for assistance in case they face any problems. This tempts banks to train these guards to help such customers in need. However RBI feels that these 'self-service' terminals should not involve assistance from any such 'third parties' who may themselves stand as potential threats to customer safety.

Tell us what you think. Do we need guards at ATMs? If not, what should be the solution?