FBI warns about ATM threats

FBI recently issued a warning to the banking industry that cybercriminals could bypass the various security measures on ATMs, allowing ATMs to dispense money illegally. The FBI said it had obtained an unsubstantiated anonymous line, meaning that cybercriminals plan to launch such attacks on ATMs around the world in the next few days. It is still uncertain about the vulnerability and may be related to the illegal operation of some card issuers.

The FBI warning said, “The FBI has obtained unspecified reporting indicating cyber criminals are planning to conduct a global Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cash-out scheme in the coming days, likely associated with an unknown card issuer breach.”

“In furtherance of public-private partnerships, the FBI routinely advises private industry of various cyber threat indicators observed during the course of our investigations.”

Hackers can destroy financial institutions or payment terminals by installing malware, allowing hackers to gain network-level access to administrator-level access. Once a hacker breaks into the system, it can close the limits on ATM withdrawals (and transaction limits) and even extract millions of dollars.

Via: krebsonsecurity