JACKSONVILLE, FL -- The National ATM Council Inc. said it has concerns regarding FICO's recent findings on card compromises at retail ATMs in the U.S. According to FICO, independently deployed ATMs showed an unusually high volume of illegal activity, compared with fewer at bank ATMs. NAC is questioning those findings that imply retail ATMs are less safe for consumers.
"Based on my many years in the ATM business and numerous discussions with ATM entrepreneurs throughout the nation, there is a clear consensus that card skimming is extremely rare at ATMs in retail locations," said NAC chairman George Sarantopoulos of New York City-based Access One ATM. "It's common knowledge in the industry that the much higher volume, outdoor, unattended bank ATMs are the prime targets for card skimming. The independent segment's much lower transaction volume, heavily attended, indoor retail ATMs remain one of the safest places in America to get your cash."
Click here to see story on FICO's recent fraud study.
NAC also challenged similar findings from last year's annual FICO report, which ran directly counter to evidence received by the association from ATM operators throughout the U.S. Both FICO reports stand at odds with NAC's 2016 ATM Industry-wide Skimming Survey results, showing that nine in 10 retail ATM providers have never encountered a card data-skimming device on their ATM routes. A majority of the 166 ATM operators participating in the 2016 survey had 10-plus years' experience in the retail ATM business, and collectively represented more than 50,000 retail machines in the field.