Frankfurt/Main (dpa/lhe) - Data theft at ATMs in Hesse has decreased slightly in the current year, contrary to the nationwide trend at a low level. Between January and November 2022, criminals manipulated ATMs in the country nine times in order to spy on bank customers’ card data and PIN. In the same period of the previous year, the Frankfurt facility Euro Kartensysteme in Hesse counted eleven such "skimming" cases, in the whole of 2021 there were 17. Individual ATMs may have been attacked several times.

By far the most "skimming" cases were counted in Hamburg in the eleven months with 102. According to the information, nationwide there were 222 after 116 in the same period of the previous year. Despite the increase in the number of cases, gross claims fell significantly by 70 percent to a record low of EUR 99,000.

The financial industry explains the decline in the amount of damage that has been observed for years primarily with investments in so-called EMV technology: payment cards are equipped with a kind of mini-computer, and the card is checked for authenticity each time it is used. Germany has relied on EMC technology for years. There are also only a few countries in the world where payment cards with magnetic strips that are relatively easy to copy can be used on a large scale.

Consumers in Germany who have become victims of "skimming" usually do not have to fear any financial disadvantage. As a rule, financial institutions compensate for such damage - provided the customers have handled their bank card and PIN carefully.