False keypad, card reader found on Hong Kong bank deposit machine sparks warning for ATM users to be on alert
- Card reader, false keypad and suspected wireless transmitter uncovered at a cash deposit machine in Mong Kok
- Officers arrested one of two suspects caught on surveillance cameras allegedly installing devices on machine at daybreak on April 22
Hong Kong police are warning residents to be cautious when using bank ATMs, following the seizure of a card reader and false keypad with a suspected wireless transmitter at a cash deposit machine in Mong Kok.
Officers arrested one of two suspects caught on surveillance cameras allegedly installing the two devices on the machine at daybreak on April 22, police said on Thursday.
Inspector Mak Sai-ho of the Mong Kok criminal investigation unit said the arrested man was a traveller from mainland China who had been placed on a police wanted list and was apprehended when he entered the city on Tuesday.
The suspect was the holder of a two-way permit – a travel document that allows mainlanders to visit the city, according to police.
Mak said the man was charged with one count of accessing a computer with criminal or dishonest intent and brought before West Kowloon Court on Thursday.
He said police were still searching for the other suspect who had left the city.
The case came to light on April 22 when a bank employee found something unusual with a deposit machine in Mong Kok. The bank sent staff to inspect the machine and discovered the two suspicious devices that day.
“They discovered a card reader installed in the card inserting slot and another keypad with a connected chip was placed on top of the original keypad,” the inspector said.
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Mak said police checked CCTV footage, including from surveillance cameras newly installed in the district to combat crime, that led officers to identify two suspects and their route of escapes.
“In this case, the bank promptly detected something unusual with the deposit machine and removed the card reader and the keypad,” he said, adding that preliminary investigations showed no card data had been stolen in this case.
A source familiar with the case believed the chip in the false keypad was connected to a wireless transmitter, which sent data to nearby criminals with a remote receiver.
The insider said the two suspects had fled the city after learning their devices had been uncovered.
He said it was possible fraudsters could use stolen information to make online purchases or make counterfeit cards.
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Police urged the public to remain vigilant when using ATMs. “They should pay attention to any abnormalities in the card slot, keypad and the keypad’s protective cover,” Mak said.
Police said the investigation was continuing and further arrests were possible.
Commissioner of Police Raymond Siu Chak-yee on Saturday said 15 sets of surveillance cameras installed in Mong Kok in March had led to the swift arrests of three men in two serious cases.
By the middle of this year, 600 sets of CCTV cameras will be placed in crime hotspots as part of a police plan to install 2,000 by the end of 2024.
