Cash Machine 'Skimmers' Now Thinner Than A Razor (PICTURES)

PHOTOS: Cash Machine 'Skimmers' Now Thinner Than A Razor

Even as cash machines get more secure, the fraudsters who attack them are also upping their game.

So-called ATM 'skimmers', who insert card-reading devices into cash machines to take the details of unsuspecting users, have developed new hardware so thin it's almost impossible to see.

Former Washington Post reporter and security expert Brian Krebs said that the super-thin devices can be inserted directly into a cash machine's card reader.

He quoted two reports by the European ATM Security Team (EAST), whcih said fraudsters are developing the new devices to avoid detection.

The non-profit group said: "Skimming attacks at ATMs remain an issue for all but two of the countries, with eight countries reporting increases in such incidents, and three countries decreases.

"Higher quality and more efficient skimming devices are being noticed."

Usually card skimmers require another device to capture your PIN - either a hidden camera, a PIN pad reader or even somebody standing close enough to read your number.

The data on the magnetic strip, read by the skimmer, is loaded onto another card and the PIN is used to take out cash from the machine.

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