People who are into the bitcoin buying business for the first time may find a BTC ATM more comfortable. They are already familiar with using a traditional money ATM. Although crypto ATMs are not exactly like a conventional ATM, the basic interface is almost the same.

1. ATM Crime, ATM Fraud Overview
ATM Crime:AttacksagainstATMs maybe classifiedaseitherATMphysical attacksor ATMfraud.
ATM Physical Attacks:
ATM physical attacksare normallyperpetratedwiththe intentionof gainingaccesstothe cash or other
valuable mediawithinthe ATMsafe or ATMsecurityenclosure. Some of the mostcommonmethods
include RamRaid,ExplosiveAttack(gasandnon-gas) andCutting(e.g.rotarysaw,blow torch, thermal
lance,diamonddrill) BTCATM.The successof ATM physical attacksisoftenmeasuredbywhat
percentage of the cash isstolenand the speedbywhichthe attack iscompleted.
ATM Fraud
There are manydifferentcategoriesof ATMfraud.In general ATMfraudcan include anydeliberate
'criminal'technique whichinvolvesthe use of anATM to obtainsomethingof value tothe perpetrator.
The most commontypesof ATM fraudinclude CardTheft(e.g.Lebanese Loop) ,PIN Compromise(e.g.
ShoulderSurfing),CardSkimming,CashTrapping,TransactionReversalandDepositFraud.
ATM Fraud inmore detail:
Card Theft
Card theftiswhere the perpetratorphysicallyobtainsthe consumer'scardat or inthe vicinityof an
ATM. The mostcommonmethodof card theftisCard Trapping.The mostpopularmethodof trappinga
card at the ATMis knownas Lebanese Loop CryptoATM. A Lebanese Loopisdesignedtobe entered
withinthe cardentryslot of the ATM card readerin sucha wayas it doesnotpreventthe consumer
fromenteringtheircard,butit doespreventthe ATMcard readerfromejectingorreturningthe card to
the consumer.The perpetratorcan subsequentlyremove the trappedcardonce the consumerhas
departedfromthe ATMwiththe belief thatthe ATMhas capturedor swallowedtheir card.Another
variantof card trappingisknownas the AlgerianV trap.Othermethodsof card theftinclude card
swappingwhere the consumer'scardisexchangedforacard of similarappearance.Thisdistraction
methodisoftenexecutedatthe time thatthe consumer'scard isbeingreturnedorejectedtothe
consumerfollowingatransactionatthe ATM.
PIN Compromise
PIN compromise methodsrange fromthe verytechnicallysophisticatedtothe relativelyeasytechnique
knownas shouldersurfing.Shouldersurfinginvolvesthe perpetratorstandingclose enoughtothe
consumerto observe the numbersenteredonthe keypad.A more sophisticatedmethodof observation
or surveillanceinvolvesthe use of aminiature camerawhichcan eithertransmitthe image of the PIN
beingenteredorstore the recordingwithinthe device Bitcoin.Withthe increase inthe numberof
mobile phoneswithvideocapture capabilities,suchphonesare adaptedtocompromise PINs.Keyboard

2. overlaysare deviceswhichare designedtolookverylike the genuineATMkeypadand are fixedontop
of the genuine keypad.The KeyboardOverlaywillrecordthe numbersenteredonthe keypadbutalso
permitthe genuine keyboardtoacceptthe PIN beingentered.Similarlytothe use of cameras,the
keyboardoverlaymaytransmitthe informationtoa remote receiverorstore the informationlocally.
SophisticatedATMInfrastructure Hacking,Architecture Hacking,NetworkHacking,Social Engineering,
Phishingandvariousothermethodsare alsousedtocompromise PIN codes.
Card Skimming
Card skimminginvolvesmakingacopyof the informationencodedonthe magneticstripe of the card.
There are variousdifferenttypes of skimmingdevice designedtobe usedindifferentenvironments,
fromhand helddevicesthroughdooraccessskimmerstominiaturecardentryslotskimmers.Handheld
skimmingdevicesare more commonlyassociatedwithcardskimminginrestaurantsandotherretail
establishments.Whenusedinthe ATMenvironmentthe perpetratorwilleitheruse distraction
techniquestotemporarilyobtainandcopythe consumer'scard or sometimespickthe pocketof the
consumer.Some ATMsare installedinacontrolledenvironmentwherebythe consumerisrequiredto
swipe acard at the door of the ATMlocationtogain access.Skimmingdevicesmaybe attachedtoor
usedas a replacementforagenuine dooraccessdevice.ATMcard entryslotskimmershave various
shapesandsizes andalso varyin sophistication. Wheninstalledcorrectlytheyallow normal operation
of the ATMin that the consumer'scard isenteredandreturnedcorrectly,howeverthe magneticstripe
iscopiedbythe skimmingdevice.One of the mosteffectiveATMskimmingdevicesisknownasthe Sofia
skimmer.The skillsof the perpetratorsinmodifyingthe packagingof skimmingdevicesmakesthemvery
difficultforthe untrainedobservertodetect.
Cash Trapping
Cash trappingisthe termusedto describe attackswhere the consumer'scashistrappedand prevented
frombeingpresentedordeliveredtothe consumer.The varietyof trappingdevicesissignificant,
rangingfromthose whichrequire insertionwithinthe ATM'scash dispenserthroughfalse frontstowell
engineeredelectro-mechanicaldeviceswhichsimulatethe removal of the cashbythe consumer.
Transaction Reversal
Transactionreversal techniquesinvolve highlyskilledmanipulationof the ATMduringa transactionwith
the resultthat the hostcomputerbelieves thatthe consumerdidnotreceive theircashand thusre-
creditsor reversesthe transaction.Othervariantsof transactionreversalinvolveeithercollusionwith
someone withinthe ATMnetworkor detailedknowledgeof the rulesgoverningtransactionprocessing.
DepositFraud
Depositfraudcoversa varietyof criminal techniquesfrommakingfalsedeposits,trappingdeposits
throughskilful manipulationof the depositacceptingdevice.False Depositfraudincludesexploiting
processingrulestodrawon fundsbefore theyhave beenverifiedandofficiallyclearedforcreditingto
an account. Similartocash trapping,DepositTrappingallowsthe perpetratortoobtainthe valuable

3. mediapriorto itbeingsecuredwithinthe depositterminalssafeorsecurityenclosure.Highlyskilled
perpetratorsof depositfraudmayuse techniquesbywhichthe depositterminal believesithasreceived
and successfullyvalidatedadepositwheninfactithas not.
The above article isprovidedbyDFR RiskManagement,whoprovide consultancyservicesadvisingATM
and self-service terminal deployers,manufacturers,aswell aslaw enforcementagenciesonhow to
manage ATM andself-service terminalfraudandsecuritythreats.