Why Friday is unsafe for ATM users

Some Automated Teller Machine (ATM) users in Lagos have got a rough deal with suspected fraudsters, who luck around the booths to dispose them of their money.

They have perfected the act of plying their nefarious trade, usually at the weekends. They forcibly dispossess ATM users of their cards on Friday evenings and make away with the Personal Identification Number (PIN) codes to make withdrawals elsewhere.

 This is because banking are usually shut down for the weekend and complaints about stolen cards or ATM deactivation will not be possible until Monday. According to information gathered, robbers approach their targets with smile while carrying out transaction on the ATM. They display their guns and point to their colleagues standing in case you try the alarm or call for people's attention.  A victim, who was robbed recently while narrating her ordeal said “there criminal snatched my three ATM cards and forced me to release my PIN. The sum of N680,000 withdrawn between Friday and Sunday on all my three accounts.

 They knew that there was no way I could reach my bank to notify them of my encounter at the ATM before Monday.  After collecting my ATM cards and confirming that the PIN given to them was not fake, they drove off on a motor-cycle with the two accomplices,  “she said.     It is advised that bank customers to avoid making withdrawals on lonely or less secured environments, especially on weekends to avoid falling in the hands of the criminals and to raise the alarm whenever they notice suspicious movement.