Fraudsters deprive account holders of millions of rupees in Multan region

MULTAN: Several account-holders have been deprived of millions of rupees by fraudsters through skimmers attached to automated teller machines (ATMs) in Multan.

Reportedly, dozens of account-holders were robbed of their money when they used their ATM cards on Bosan Road ATM booth. The fraudsters deprived the account-holders of their money by getting information about their accounts through skimmers.

The management of commercial banks avoid lodging complaints with police to protect their business reputation. According to ATM related things experts, some ATM brands can easily accommodate skimmers due to manufacturing faults and banks management do not replace such machines and avoid installing skimmer-free ATMs.

Muhammad Tariq Chaudhry, a resident of Bosan Road, said he received a text message from a bank about of the withdrawal of Rs 400, 000 from his ATM of Bosan Road. He said he was astonished to receive a cash withdrawal message whereas he did not draw a single penny from the ATM. He said the bank management has assured him of forwarding his case to higher authorities concerned for recovery of his money. He said six residents of Zakariya Town on Bosan Road also faced the similar situation in terms of receiving bank messages.

When contacted, a senior banker told The News that fraudsters steal ATM card information through skimmers by taking advantage of manufacturing fault of the ATMs. Multan Gulghast Circle SP Ahmed Nawaz Shah expressed his lack of knowledge about the occurrence of ATM frauds. He said no such incident had been brought in the notice of police.