Cloning, it seems, does not limit to sheep or beloved pets. Over 60 people probably learnt that the hard way when their own ATM card information was collected and encoded into metal cards by a 27-year-old man.
Anyone with sense would probably pick up on the fact that maybe—just maybe—banks can tell when you are using a cloned card (technology being amazing or whatever). However, that devastatingly uncommon sense did not extend to this man who was arrested on 16 February 2023.
Man Cloned Over 60 ATM Cards to Withdraw Cash from ATMs
A laptop, 2 notebooks, an engraving machine, a card encoder, a point-of-sale-machine, metal cards as well as some cloned metal payment cards were seized by the police the same day he was arrested.
It was speculated that the man copied over 60 authentic ATM card details from the magnetic strips of original payment cards.
He then encoded them into blank metal cards which he acquired online (apparently).
Even though the Singapore Police Force did not go into the details of how this was done, a quick search on the web would show you that there are a few ways scammers could acquire credit card details of others illegally. Here are some of the ways:
- Stolen cards
- Phishing and Skimmers using malicious software (that you may unknowingly download from that sketchy email that promises that you have a virus on your computer)
- Intercepting cards from email
- Access via public Wifi network
There is no denying: this guy was invested.
Not invested enough to find a better way to earn money, but still willing to go through collecting over 60 card information from Europay, Visa and Mastercard payment cards and then going through the (speculated) lengthy process of encoding them into other metal cards. Just to get caught.
How He Was Caught
On 7 February, an unnamed bank reported to the police that a cloned bank card was used to make a withdrawal at an automated teller machine (ATM).
The man was then apprehended nine days later on the 16 February after Commercial Affairs Department officers, with all the efficiency of a group of teenage girls finding out that their ex has a new girlfriend, dug deeper and found the identity of this man.
Don’t be a Copycat
The Singapore Police force stated that anyone found guilty of possessing equipment that has been specifically designed or modified for the making of fake instruments can be jailed up to five years and/or fined.
The sentence could increase to 15 years if one is found with forged valuable security.
The poor man would probably be stuck in jail for a long amount of time, probably reflecting on how he should have stuck to scamming people on Telegram instead.
The police did say they took such matters very seriously and people in the production and possession of such forged documents would be dealt with according to the law—and with good reason.
Reports of unauthorised online banking and card transactions in Singapore jumped 460% in 2020 and while that was one of the biggest jump Singapore has seen in the past few years, a recent report by the Singapore Police force saw a 897 increase to 2,237 cases reported in 2021 for banking related phishing scams.
Non banking related phishing scams also saw a staggering 2,139 increase from 2020 to 2021. Such scams include victims handing over their card details, one-time passwords, or even banking credentials.
The money involved seemed to have multiplied by more than a dozen, bringing the total of S$15.3 million being cheated out of victims, a shocking jump from the modest amount of S$984,000 in 2020.
Don’t Get Scammed
The Singapore Police Force also released a few tips for us to prevent such crimes from happening.
- Keep your bank cards with you all the time
- Opt in for SMS notification for any charges on your bank cards
- Check your bank statements and contact the bank immediately if there if any unauthorised charges or discrepancies
- Be poor so no one would want to scam you
Okay, maybe not the last point, but you get the gist.
Such scams are usually due to the carelessness on the cardholder’s part. Fun fact: the cardholder has to bear charges if they are caught being reckless with sensitive card information or took no immediate actions upon encountering unauthorised transactions.
That being said, here are some Don’ts.
- Don’t give our your bank card details to unknown persons
- Don’t reveal your one-time password to anyone
- Don’t expose your bank cards until you are ready to make your purchases
Here’s a simplified summary of the South Korea martial law that even a 5-year-old would understand:
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