effry96:
The purpose of exposing this hacking technique is not to encourage thieves but to persuade banks to improve security. Ironically, this hack takes advantage of a security feature that is designed to protect our cash in case we are being mugged at the ATM, or we just forget
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Precaution 1: Most ATM¡¯s are covered by camera.The thief will therefore have his face covered.
Precaution 2: The thief will have to wait about 20 seconds (which can seem like an eternity when in a rush) and the ATM may make some noise thereafter. The best time to attempt this hack is therefore at night, when there is nobody around. Remember, most ATM¡¯s are accessible 24 hours a day.
Precaution 3: Obviously the thief will need to know the pin number. This hack is not about hacking the pin. The thief can use their own credit card, at least once.
Precaution 4: The thief must ascertain whether the bank operates a ¡®cash retraction/retention policy¡¯ for their ATM machines. Most banks do have such a policy.
Step 1: The thief uses an available credit/debit card (preferably with a large withdrawal limit) and selects the option to withdraw a specific amount of cash.The greater the number of notes the thief withdraws, the easier step 2 becomes.The card is returned and the cash is released into the cash dispenser.
Step 2: This is the critical point. Calm and have steady hands are important: The thief holds firm of the top or bottom few notes of the cash pile (with a slight push into the dispenser) with one hand and with the other hand, slide- pulls the remaining (larger pile) of cash from the dispenser.
Step 3: If the thief has successfully managed to keep a few notes in the cash dispenser, he has to about wait 20 seconds.Warning:The ATM machine may make a few noises. But after the elapsed time, the ATM will take the remaining cash back into the ATM.
Having assumed someone is attempting to mug the thief, the ATM takes the cash back and cancels the entire transaction. ATM¡¯s can count the cash out but can¡¯t count the cash back into the machine.
If the thief chose to withdraw
If the thief chose to withdraw 5000 and retain 500 within the ATM, the bank will cancel the entire 5000 transaction. And the thief will have pocketed 500 of ¡®free cash¡¯.
THE SOLUTIONS
There are a couple things banks can do to improve their security. If machines can count cash out, they should be able to count incoming cash from the same cash dispenser. Or banks can disable the automatic cash retraction policy and have the account holder come in to the bank to make a claim.
Some banks (such as first bank fcmb etchave cancelled their cash retraction policy, altogether.
But banks in the UK appear to be moving in the opposite direction. In the past, banks such as HSBC, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Tesco Bank held on to retracted money in reserve until the account holder made a claim.
Barclays Bank plc and Lloyds TSB Group have an automatic cast re-crediting policy, as do Santander but only if the account holder is a Santander customer.
It is time for banks to improve their ATM technology so the cash can be counted back into the machine.
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Aso rock, Photo: skyscrapercity.com
Abuja city is almost empty. More than 50 percent of its residents have travelled out of the city for the traditional end-of-year vacation and reunion with family members in villages and cities across the country.
The city can be boring and lonely.
For residents left in the city, don’t be desolate, here are 10 inexpensive ways you can enjoy the Christmas.
1. Wonderland Amusement Park: Go out with family and friends – or just yourself – to Wonderland amusement park. It has leisure gardens for relaxation, games and rides for all ages. It is a few minutes from the city centre, close to the National Stadium.
2. Millennium Park: This is the best place for you if you have friends that like picnic. Take your music and picnic box to Millennium Park at no fee and have fun in the nicely groomed natural park.
3. National Children’s Park and Zoo: The National Children’s Park and Zoo in Abuja has few animals and plenty of playgrounds and activities for children. The list of animals in the zoo vary but children will love it.
4. Jabi Lakeside: Jabi Lake is man made in the heart of the city. It offers the closest to beach experience within the city. By the Lakeside, you can also have picnic with friends, rent a boat cruise or ride on a horse.
5. Silverbird: If you love indoor fun and movies, Silverbird entertainment centre is the place to go. It has cinema, a game arcade, eateries and shops. It is a fun place to hang out with friends.
6. Gurara Falls: Gurara falls is one of the most beautiful waterfalls near Abuja. The fall has amazing scenes of rock formations together with beautiful flora of evergreen trees and bushes, rivers, ponds and waterfalls all around you. During this Christmas – and all dry seasons – the water is calm and you can swim the small ponds under the falls. There are the beach for picnic.
It is worth seeing this Christmas. It is located between Suleja, just on the edge of Abuja, and Minna, the Niger state capital.
The beautiful thing about this trip is that you can make a stopover at the famous Zuma Rock in Suleja. It is a double barreled fun trip.
7. Zimbabwe: If you want to get away from the civilisation of the city and enjoy the Christmas in the local taste, Zimbabwe is the place. It is a nice outdoor place about 35km from Abuja city. It’s got cheap food and drinks, barbecued beef, chicken, fish. Here, you get all sorts of local cuisines and all that spicy traditional domestic and bush meat delicacies.
Don’t miss the palm wine.
8. Aso Rock: Aso Rock is the largest and tallest rock in Abuja and measures about 936 meters above sea level. The rock overlooks residential quarters, an office building and a presidential villa. Nigeria’s presidential villa, Aso Rock Villa, derived its name from the rock. It is an ideal spot to get a bird’s eye view of the city and a great mountain climbing experience.
9. Pedam Lake: You may have lived in the city for decades without a hint this lake exists. But it is massive. It lies behind the presidential Villa, sprawling towards Nassarawa state, for those looking for extreme adventure for Christmas. It is not well developed for tourism but is accessible through the Abuja Park and Zoo or through some other less known routes from Udoma Street in Aso.
10. For Expats: Berger Life Camp, home to Berger Construction workers is the best spots for expatriates, especially Europeans and Europe lovers, to meet during Christmas in Abuja. They have amazing Christmas events with German food and beer, crafts, and spiced wine. You would also find a large collection of Filipinos at Berger Life Camp.