It is a question a growing number of bank customers are asking themselves as they access their accounts online or withdraw cash from an ATM.The murky world of internet fraud has cast a shadow over online banking, which promised a revolution in the way we manage our money, but has since fallen victim to security scares and identity scams.
Meanwhile, fraudsters are using an increasingly advanced array of devices to tamper with bank cash machines, allowing them to copy – or skim – card details from unwitting customers.
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Well here’s a bit of extra paranoia for you – barring a couple of exceptions where I know the provenance of them exactly, I won’t use my current account card in ATMs which are not built into the wall of a bank with a matching logo. It restricts your access to money, but provides peace of mind.
Before use I also run my finger back and forth in the slot a couple of times, to check for blockages/wires.
I do have an second ATM card for a cash-account at an entirely different bank, which never has more than a “float” of around 200 quid in it. That’s for deployment in emergencies.
Finally, I actually bother to audit my monthly statements, and shred sensitive paperwork.
The system (to date) works. In 12 or so years nothing untowards has happened barring an former ISP which spontaneously started billing me some 9 months after I had left them.
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