ACCA USA publishes Report on Skimmer Fraud

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) in the USA has published a new research report entitled “Skimming the Surface – How Skimmer Fraud Has Become a Global Epidemic”.  The report was produced by Pace University, sponsored by ACCA USA.    

The report’s author, Dr Darren R. Hayes of Pace University, attended the first global conference of the European ATM Security Team (EAST), the EAST Financial Crime and Security (FCS) Forum, in June 2013.and EAST and its members subsequently assisted with research.

The report provides examples from across the globe to highlight skimming growth and scope, and offers recommendations for institutions and individuals to combat such activities.  It focuses on devices that read and record data from consumer payment cards, such as ATM, credit, debit, prepaid and electronic gift cards.  “Devices are becoming smaller and have more memory,” Hayes said.  “The quality of data on the devices has improved over time, and skimmers often are password protected and use advanced encryption protocols.”

There are 2.2 million ATMs worldwide, which will escalate to more than 3 million by 2016.  A new ATM is installed every five minutes.  North America has the largest ATM market in the world, with the most – approximately 425,000 – in the United States.

The report recommends that Financial institutions should speed up the integration of anti-skimming solutions and fraud investigations into their daily operations and improve cooperation with national and international law enforcement to keep up with the increased sophistication and global nature of skimmer schemes.  It suggests that the future of ATM transactions lies in contactless cards, biometric security, and smartphone withdrawals instead of traditional ATM cards.
research.

The report can be downloaded from the ACCA Website