Hyderabad: Banks have failed to comply with police instructions to strengthen security at ATM kiosks. The Cyberabad Police says it held a meeting with bankers in 2016 and listed the security measures to be taken to improve surveillance but nothing has been done. This became evident after the attempted thefts at ATMs in Kukatpally last week. Police said that in some of the incidents, the role of insiders like security persons or cash management agency staff was was also found.
The guard on night duty at the ATM, Mallaiah, was sick and his sons had come to stand in for him. They were on duty till 2 am and left as there were no customers. “If the bank had a security monitoring mechanism, they could have identified this lapse. Banks should coordinate with the police department and set up their own mechanism to monitor ATM security,” a senior official from the Cyberabad police said.
Last year, eight persons including the directors of Logicash cash management agency were arrested for siphoning off money which was supposed to be loaded in the ATM. Most of the ATMs in the city are unguarded, making more vulnerable for attack; where the kiosks are guarded, there is poor supervision from banks. The banks depend on the police for ATM safety. “A proper background check of the cash management staff should be made and safety guidelines prescribed by the RBI should be followed,” a Hyderabad police official said. In the recent past.
