(Mirror Daily, United States) – Krebs on Security website warns that hackers who managed to turn ATM’s into winning slot machines that sucked all the deposited money out have arrived to the U.S.
The so-called “jackpotting” attacks have been a hot topic in Europe and Asia, but the United States is no longer safe.
Hackers’ usually employ high-tech tactics to steal debit card data and ultimately drain users’ bank accounts, but the new “jackpotting” method represents a greater security concern for American bankers.
This is the first instance of jackpotting in the United States,
said Krebs on Security’s founder Brian Krebs.
The cyber security analyst warned that such attacks “are here to stay”. According to his website, financial institutions in the U.S. have been warned about he attacks in the last week, but it is unclear how the attacks are being carried out.
Krebs cites an alert sent to ATM maker NCR’s clients in which the company confirms the first case of ATM “jackpotting” in the U.S. Bankers are urged to take all appropriate measures to protect their assets from such hacks.
ATM Machines Targeted in Mexico and the U.S.
According to the security news website, criminal gangs have been recently targeting the ATM machines found in pharmacies and drive-throughs. Similar attacks have been carried out in Mexico where cyber criminals used an altered endoscope to reach a port and upload a malicious piece of software.
The maker of the targeted ATMs, Diebold Nixdorf, refused to offer data on how many machines were compromised across the U.S. and Mexico. What’s more, hackers do not only infect the machines, they are able to erase their hard drives entirely.
Regardless of the method employed, the outcome is the same. yet, the hacks are not new. A researcher demonstrated that such attacks are doable during a tech conference in 2010, according to Wired.
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