Financial institutions see rise in fraud and ATM bombings, despite interventions
This is contained in the latest annual South African Banking Risk Information Centre report that was published on Tuesday.
JOHANNESBURG - There has been a significant rise in fraud and ATM bombings in South Africa, despite financial institutions making improvements to their security systems.
This is contained in the latest annual South African Banking Risk Information Centre (Sabric) report that was published on Tuesday.
The report covers crimes reported during the period between 1 January to 31 December 2022.
Sabric receives its figures from 42 of its members and partners - which include the country’s largest banks, South African Police Services and the National Prosecuting Authority among other entities.
Sabric said between 2021 and 2022 – there’s been a 23% increase in ATM bombings, despite the activation of dye-stain.
It said it was concerning that in many instances, ATM bombers took the stained cash.
There was also a 36% surge in reported incidents of banking application fraud.
Sabric said fraudsters used a variety of tactics including confidence tricks, exploiting data vulnerabilities and the stealing of login details.
On the positive side, Sabrics said there has been a 39% drop in robberies that occurred prior to bank branch cash deposits.
It said this has largely been down to the arrest of major kingpins in hotspot regions across the country.
