Dubai, Sep 16 : UAE has been hit by credit and ATM card frauds as hackers from Russia
and Ukraine used counterfeit cards to steal funds.
Some banks in the UAE have slashed the daily cash withdrawal limit of ATM users
by almost half and others blocked cash withdrawal using the credit card of other banks as
a precautionary measure.
Some banks even blocked international use of ATM cards as a preventive measure
while HSBC Bank temporarily reduced the daily withdrawal limit to Dh 6,000 for premier
card members and Dh 4,000 for others as part of measures to contain the damage, Khaleej
Times reported.
As thousands of customers thronged ATM machines to change their card PINs
(personal identification number) over the past three days, most banks in the UAE said they
would continue the state of alert against the fraud, but refused to disclose the size of
the money stolen or how many accounts were skimmed.
An initial investigation by banks indicated that cash machines were rigged with
devices that stole customers' PINs as they made withdrawals. Jonathan Campbell James,
regional head of security and fraud risk, HSBC West Asia, said.
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Major-General Khamis Matar Al Mazeina, Deputy
Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police, said the hackers are from Russia and Ukraine. Banking
sources, however, said the hackers were part of an international network, with most of the
fraudulent transactions originating from more than 20 countries outside the UAE.
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