Meadows Credit Union - Security at the ATM.

MCU Offers Strong Security to Members
Identity thieves are using your need for quick, convenient ATMs to more easily gather your personal card information. What we want as consumers, from our ATM experience, is a quick and secure (from robberies) location, a machine that is easy to use, and completes our transaction promptly so we can be on our way.

Credit unions and banks have responded by enclosing the ATM with locked doors and card-key entries. Identity thieves are using these features to gain easier access to your information, allowing them to create fraudulent cards, and access your account. It is up to credit unions and banks to help prevent this.

Some recent scams work in the following ways:

An ATM is located at the edge of a busy parking lot in a glass-enclosed building. You need your ATM card to activate the door buzzer which grants you access.
The identity thief places a card scanner on top of the door entry device, so when you stick your card in, it records your card number.
They also install a very small camera that can view the keypad of the ATM where you are entering your PIN number.
The identity thief watches the video camera from a parked car and records your PIN number as you enter it.
The thief now has both your card number and PIN, can make a fraudulent card, put it into any ATM, and access your account.

One feature that the thief does not have access to is the special security code hidden in your debit card's magnetic strip. This number is supposed to be checked by the bank during the transaction before distributing money, to be sure it is not a fraudulent card. The Wall Street Journal reported that a Gartner Research study found that banks are not checking this number as often as they should, allowing losses to occur. Gartner estimated that ATM fraud resulted in $2.75 billion in losses from June 2004 through May 2005.

MCU Security Measures
MCU takes account security very seriously and has several features in place at our ATM to protect our members. Everyday we do security sweeps through the public areas in and around our ATM watching for signs of tampering or other misuse of the facility.

Additionally, the hidden code on an ATM card must be verified for each and every transaction before any account activity can take place or money can be distributed.

Of course, as a member at MCU, it is important that you carefully guard your card and PIN. Whether you are at an ATM or at a grocery store terminal, be sure to cover the key pad when entering your PIN number. If you ever feel the number may have been compromised, bring your card into the MCU lobby, and we can re-PIN it and give you a new number to prevent any theft from your account.