Capital hit by card cash gang

The fraudsters are believed to have ripped off dozens of bank cards in one night using a technique called "skimming".

An off-duty police officer stumbled across the scam at a cash dispenser at the Bank of Scotland’s headquarters on the Mound while using the machine at midnight.

Police and industry experts today warned the fraud - which uses virtually undetectable technology - is sweeping the Capital.

Criminals targeted the Bank of Scotland’s headquarters - which has two outside ATMs - on Saturday night, covering one with an out-of-order sign.

The second machine was then fitted with a dummy card slot which is unnoticeable to the untrained eye. When a customer inserts their card, the data on the magnetic strip is read and saved by the dummy before the card is fed into the real machine.

A tiny camera is placed on an L-shaped metal strip above the screen which records the card user putting in their PIN number.

The criminals then use the data to clone the card and either sell on the fraudulent card to other criminals or empty bank accounts using machines across the country.

Detective Sergeant John Peaston said it was vital the public was made aware of the scam. "It’s not something which is prevalent in Edinburgh as yet, but I think we’ll start to see more of it," he warned.

"This was discovered at midnight and, as you can imagine, the vast majority of people coming out of pubs and clubs are not going to be aware of these devices, especially when it’s dark.

"The devices themselves are easy to obtain, but the cloning of the cards is different and there has got to be some form of organisation behind it.

"We would warn people if they see anything suspicious not to use the machine and the simplest advice would be to cover your hand when putting in your PIN number."

It is thought dozens of card users had already used the machine before the scam was detected on Saturday.

Industry watchdogs said it was possible fraudsters were now hitting the Capital to cash in before new chip and PIN cards, which offer more protection from fraud, are introduced.

Experts say the spy technology used to record data is impossible to notice unless customers know exactly what they are looking for.

Sandra Quinn, spokeswoman for chip and PIN promoters Association of Payment Clearance System, said statistics showed that skimming crimes had increased over the past year. "Edinburgh fits in as an obvious place to target because it’s a large urban area with a large tourism industry where people probably wouldn’t notice their card being skimmed before they got home.

"Most gangs and fraudsters would be hard pushed to miss the fact that chip and PIN is coming in, they know it’s going to impact on their bottom line and so they are going to be doing as much as possible."

The news follows shocking figures unveiled in March which showed that credit card fraud in Edinburgh has soared by more than 1 million in a year.

The figure means the Capital has the fastest growing rate of credit card fraud in the country, with more than 3.8m-worth committed last year.

The figure had increased from 2.7m in the previous year, and doubled since 2000.

In comparison, Glasgow has seen a reduction in similar fraud of more than 180,000 in the last year, while Aberdeen's decrease is more than 70,000.

Chip and PIN technology replaces the need for credit card holders to give signatures and instead uses a four-digit PIN entered into a small box similar to those used inside bank cash machines. The technology, which has been introduced in some city supermarkets, is being backed by consumer watchdogs, banks, credit card firms and retailers.

The new-style cards are part of a global effort to combat the growing problem of fraud.

Smart chips in the cards can store information more securely than magnetic strips, which should help prevent skimming.

"Using a PIN to verify a transaction will also make it harder for lost or stolen cards to be used.

It is hoped nine out of ten people in the UK will have a chip and PIN card by the end of 2004.

A Bank of Scotland spokesman said:

"We would say to customers that if they see anything suspicious on a cash machine to report it to their nearest branch and to take extra care when keying in their PIN number. We take all kinds of fraud very seriously and ensure that our customers never lose out financially when it happens."