Warning: If You Spot This On An ATM *DO NOT* Use It!

Taking cash out of an ATM is always risky business. Is that old lady peeping at your PIN? Is there a hidden gang waiting to nab all those hard-earned fifties?

Well as genuine as those fears may be, ATM scammers are far more sophisticated than we ever thought, as one Reddit user discovered this week.

Known only by his username, Bendeton, this guy was using an ATM when he noticed an odd device loosely attached to the machine. He found that a small card scanning device was added to the card-slot on the ATM, which sends the information wirelessly to a nearby receiver.

There was also a small camera sneakily placed to see him enter his PIN – giving scammers all the info they needed to gain access to his account.

https://imgur.com/IKiN1Sa

Another Reddit user who claimed to be an ATM repair person, commented on the post saying, “ATM Repair guy here. I’m not usually one to hijack a comment, but here are some tips. As stated in other comments, check to see if the card reader seems janky. If it’s loose, if it looks like anyone has tampered with it or it is damaged or something about it just looks off, don’t use it.

“If you believe you have found a skimmer and you are not at a bank branch or they are closed, LEAVE THE PREMISE, CALL THE COPS AND DO NOT REMOVE IT LIKE OP [Original poster] DID,” he warned.

“Your finger prints will be on it which will make it more difficult for the police to recover bad guy prints. Good job. But beyond that, the way these things work is that there is a person nearby watching a bluetooth connection on a laptop. They probably see you. This is a quick way to get mugged. Good luck and stay safe, folks.”

Moral of the story? Stay vigilant, and where possible, only use ATMs within your bank branch – you know, just in case.