The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Concern over security provided at ATM centres

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Tuesday, Aug 26, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Concern over security provided at ATM centres

L. Srikrishna

“Not all dos and don’ts are followed by many customers”

MADURAI: The long queues in front of automated teller machines (ATM) in the city, no doubt, reflect the growing popularity of the facility among cardholders; but the police have raised doubts over the security at these places “since there are some loose ends.”

A senior officer in Madurai City Police said that 22 banks have 88 ATM outlets at different locations across the city.

Though there were no untoward incidents reported so far, but for an attempt to gain entry at an ATM outlet some time ago, the officer said that it is always advisable for the bankers to accord top priority to safety of the outlets and the visiting public.

Recent checks during night patrolling revealed that for many ATMs there were no trained security guards. Similarly, not all the outlets had hidden cameras or CCTVs to have an “eye” on the visitors. In some outlets, the banks had pasted the dos and don’ts for customers. But they are not followed fully by the public, it is learnt.

For instance, persons entering the ATMs are not supposed to wear helmets or speak over mobile phones. But, one can come across people using mobile phones inside the outlet.

The presence of a trained security guard would make all the difference. Yet another observation he made was that there should not be more than one machine in an outlet. But, both the public and private sector banks had ignored the safety point of view as shoulder surfing is possible, if more than one machine is installed. At least, the banks should provide separate entry to the machines or have a proper partition, which would ensure foolproof security and privacy.

Crowd inside

Though “not more than one person should enter the outlet” boards are displayed, many ATMs are crowded during the beginning of every month. This is a gross violation on the part of bankers as it gives room and access for the offenders to indulge in crimes. The security guards should be well equipped and knowledgeable about the nearest police station and the officers in charge of the ATM, since in the event of an emergency they should be in a position to handle the crisis, the officer said.

When contacted, a senior executive of a public sector bank said that with shortage of staff they had outsourced certain functions of the ATMs.

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