The frauds using ATM machines have increased in the past few months and surprisingly, the number of cases in which the close ones have committed the fraud also reportedly increased. This has posed a problem for the investigating agencies, as the complainants request for not taking action against the offenders.
Additional Director General of Police (Cyber Crime) Ashok Dohre said that in most of the cases children, brother or close relative are found to be the culprit and later, during the investigation when after hard efforts, the cyber cell police are able to collect the evidence, it is difficult to register an FIR, as the offender happens to be close relative of the complainant.
It is mere case of negligence as the complainant shares ATM card and password, which is used by the accused, to withdraw the money secretly and later, complaints are raised without cross-checking that their family members might be involved in the fraud, he added. In one of the recent cases, a domestic help went for a shopping spree and spent thousands of rupees in online shopping along with his wife.
Interestingly, even after losing several thousand rupees, the family requested the police for bail. The cyber cell police find it hard after solving the case and narrowing down to the offender, they are being requested not to proceed with the end part of the case solving and producing the accused in the court.
In one of such interesting cases solved by the cyber cell, a police personnel posted in the city lodged a complaint that wrong deductions are made from his account using his debit card and in the investigation, it was found that his son used to withdraw the amount and surprisingly, he did not recognise his son, who was spotted at the ATM among the suspects, who withdrew the money. later, he confessed that his son was preparing for competition exams and his arrest would ruin his career.
The cyber cell police and experts suggest that bank account holders should perform banking transactions on their own and should take extra precautions while providing ATM card for withdrawal to others and never share One Time Password (OTP). There are few suggestions, which could help in safe and secure ATM transactions and should be followed. One of the most important points is — never disclose your PIN to anyone — including family, friends, financial institution employees or law enforcement agencies.
Keep your debit card in a safe place and never lend it to anyone. If you suspect that someone knows your PIN, change it immediately or contact your financial institution to cancel the card. Memorise your PIN. Avoid writing down your PIN. If you must do so, make sure that it is well disguised, for example, by re-arranging the numerals or substituting other numerals or symbols, and by keeping it within a record of other information. When selecting a PIN, do not use obvious information. You could be liable if you use your name, address, telephone number, date of birth or social insurance number.