Many fraudsters take advantage of the weak aspects of an ATM to carry out an ATM fraud. ATM card skimmer is a device that steals your ATM card details if a fraudster manages to install it successfully in an ATM. Therefore, you must take all the preventive steps to avoid these frauds that can affect your financial health in a big way. Here are a few steps that you can take to avoid ATM skimming:
Check for physical tampering
An ATM might be physically tampered with to steal sensitive card information from your cards or for ATM card cloning. It might have a card skimmer that you can verify by examining the card slot closely.
ATM skimmers or ATM cloning devices are usually bulky and can be recognized but there is another device known as ATM shimmer that is almost unrecognizable due to its small size and thin thickness. When an ATM shimmer is installed the card slot will be unusually tight. Therefore, you can avoid using ATMs that have tight card slots.
Use online methods
One of the most effective ways to avoid ATM fraud in India is to use online payment methods as much as possible. The payment should be done via UPI, mobile wallet, net banking so that you can keep your card secure from shimming and skimming.
ATM Protection Cover
Even after taking all the precautions, your ATM cards might be used illegally. This is because many online frauds such as email phishing, telephishing, frauds executed by obtaining your credit card details via apps, and ATM frauds by using PIN are quite prevalent these days.
To provide complete protection to your wallet from ATM frauds, many insurance companies are offering card protection plans. These are insurance plans that provide financial cover to prevent the losses that you can face after an ATM fraud. One such ‘Card Protection Plan’ is offered by Bajaj Finserv. To know about the main features of this plan continue reading below:
Emergency assistance
Your wallet consisting of your ATM cards might be stolen or lost during a holiday or trip. This might create a difficult situation for you as you will need funds to take care of your hotel bills, shopping, return tickets, and other related expenses. Do not worry as the CPP (Card Protection Plan) of Bajaj Finserv will provide emergency financial assistance to cover such an unprecedented crisis. The coverage amount will depend on whether you are on an abroad or domestic trip.
Additional benefits
Additional benefits are included under this card insurance policy such as coverage against online frauds, phishing, telephishing, and other fraudulent activities. Therefore, this Card Protection Plan protects your wallet from all types of fraud.
Moreover, you need not pay a separate premium for each card as this plan provides comprehensive coverage for all your payment cards including credit cards and debit cards. Also, you can benefit from this extensive coverage by paying a nominal premium every year.
Free Card Replacement
In case of a robbery or theft of your ATM cards, you can get a free card replacement as per the CPP. This replacement service is even applicable when your ATM card is lost.
Also, you can block all your payment cards with a single call when your card gets lost or robbed. This service is provided irrespective of the card issuer and card type. The icing on the cake is that you can avail all these services from the comfort of your homes as an online procedure is provided for the interested applicants.
