The months are approaching where people make constant use of their debit and credit cards in view of the expenses represented by the Christmas preparations in addition to the corresponding gifts, and that is why I consider it appropriate to alert citizens to be very cautious when using this payment instrument, given that these months are where most cases of cloning of debit and credit cards occur.
There are many ways to combat this scourge, and one of them is through the training of society, which is essential to know the modus operandi of this practice in order to avoid falling into it.
Cloning can occur in different forms and places, among the most common to have us: In stores or shops, which is where these gangs usually operate in complicity with the owners or employees, they use an electronic device known as "Pescadora" or "Skimmer", which is responsible for copying the data from the magnetic stripe of the card, being almost imperceptible to cardholders due to the similarities of these devices with those supplied by financial institutions. These devices have a storage capacity of up to 100 cards. Once the data of the cards is obtained, these are downloaded to a computer equipment, which through a software manipulate the data obtained and then transfer it to the virgin card and thus create the cloned card.
This practice not only affects the customers of financial institutions, it also damages the image or credibility of these banks, which must be recognized are making great efforts in terms of security to placate this crime, however we must not forget that users also have their share of responsibility in terms of the security of their cards.
We recommend that cardholders take into account the following tips, in order to avoid being victims of this crime:
Councils:
Criminal groups never rest, they are always looking to improve their methods, and ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) have become an important tool for their illicit activities.
Phishing is a deception technique based on the mass sending of emails, pretending to be from banks, in order to obtain information from their victims, such as card numbers, keys, account numbers, among others.
Modus operandi
The gangs that operate under this modality, send massive emails pretending to be from banks, where they invite the victim to click on a link that redirects him to a FALSE website of the bank, and then request personal banking information supposedly for reasons of security, maintenance or any other excuse. There are many people who fall into this trap and end up providing their data to criminals, since these fake websites are very well designed and their differences with the official website of the bank are not easily detected by the victims. It is important to remember that this technique is complemented by another known as Social Engineering.
Other ways you can operate this technique is through the sending of Text Messages (SMS) or through phone calls.
Useful tips:
The Superintendency of Banks and Other Financial Institutions, as the supervisory body of banking entities in the country, has been developing a set of plans in order to placate the crime of card cloning, among which we can name: 1) The use of the chip in debit and credit cards. 2) The use of wireless points of sale. 3) The Unified Screen of ATMs, among others.
Likewise, SUDEBAN maintains a constant supervision of banking entities, in order to verify compliance with the regulations emanating from it, and thus guarantee the protection of the savings of all Venezuelans.
It is important to remember the validity of the Law on Credit, Debit, Prepaid and other financing or electronic payment cards, which develops the regulations on which a bank must operate in relation to credit and debit cards, as well as regulate the relations between the issuer, the cardholder and the affiliated merchant, in order to guarantee the respect and protection of users, it also establishes the obligations of banking entities in terms of security and the duties of cardholders.
As for the crime of Cloning Debit and Credit Cards, it is typified in Article 16 of the Special Law Against Computer Crimes, with a binary penalty of 5 to 10 years in prison and a fine of 500 to 1,000 U.T.
Source: Andrés Hernández's Blog
