Debit-card data theft at ATMs is at its highest rate in 20 years

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last updated 20 May 2015

If you frequent ATMs, consider this a warning.

A new report from The Wall Street Journal, using FICO data, found that debit-card data theft at ATMs is at its highest level in 20 years. FICO didn't reveal the number of debit card data hacks, but FICO's card alert service manager, John Buzzard, told the Journal that the beginning of 2015 saw "tremendous spikes in fraud." Debit card data theft from January 2015 to April 2015 was already up 174 percent from the same time frame last year.

Though it's difficult to prevent card skimming at an ATM, experts at the Journal recommend covering the keypad with your other hand while entering your PIN and avoiding independent, non-bank ATM locations. While data theft happened at both bank ATMs and non-bank ATMs, non-bank machines saw a 317 percent increase in data theft from 2014 to 2015.