UAE Banks targeted in ATM Security Breach

2008-09-19

Banks in the United Arab Emirates are urging customers to change their credit card and debit card codes immediately.

Sonia Verma in Dubai, The Times, is reporting that "Banks in the United Arab Emirates are struggling to resolve a security breach after it emerged that hackers used counterfeit bank and credit cards to steal funds from customers' accounts."

Verman states that in an initial investigation by the banks, they indicated that cash machines were rigged with devices that stole customers' PINs as they made withdrawals, yet the lenders refuse to say how much money has been stolen during the three day attack.

Mohammed Amiri, head of retail banking at Dubai Bank, said "We have communicated directly with our customers to advise them of necessary precautions, and we have already a series of measures to protect customer accounts and minimize any potential threat."

The National reports that financial officials said the incident involved a 'flurry of unauthorized charges made on debit and ATM cards." And that the breach "appeared to have affected most financial institutions in the country. Tens of thousands of dirhams were illegally withdrawn overseas in such countries as the Philippines and Malaysia."

Suvo Sarkar, General Manager of retail banking for Emirates NBD, said "We don't really know how this happened." He continued to state that "the hackers were part of an international network, with most of the transactions originating from more than 20 countries outside the UAE."

Verma goes on to state that HSBC, Citibank, Lloyds TSB, National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Emirates NBD have issued statements saying that the problem is under control, but some customers remain unconvinced and believe that the banks failed to protect them.

Gulfnews.com has posted some complaints from customers who have lost their entire savings as a result of the security breach, one person stated;

"My account at NBAD was emptied on Sunday evening. I received 11 mobile text messages within five minutes which alerted me to the fraud. The equivalent of Dh6,000 was taken in Canadian dollars from an ATM in New York. To date, I have had no reimbursement of money by NBAD, even though I proved that I had my Visa Electron Card in my possession and NBAD copied my original UK passport." - Pauline Jeynes

You can read The Times online article by Sofia Verma, here