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17th April 2024 Issue no. 701

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Diebold launches anti-skimming technology to help protect consumers

Representing global losses in excess of a billion Euros, skimming remains the most prevalent type of ATM crime and a major concern for financial institutions that are at risk of losing customers' confidence, due to the constant threat of cardholder identity theft and card losses.

Continuously working on new solutions to counter these risks, Diebold announces Diebold ActivEdge, the first complete anti-skimming card reader that prevents all known forms of skimming, as well as other forms of ATM fraud.

ActivEdge counteracts skimming technology that currently relies on the ability to read the magnetic stripe of an ATM card in the short edge orientation, by altering the way the card is inserted and read. A shift of 90 degrees is all it takes! ActivEdge requires card users to insert their cards long-edge, making it impossible for skimmers to capture the card's information.

Safety at the ATM is a major concern for consumers and Diebold's end-users survey conducted in Europe, North America and Latin America showed that 95% of consumers preferred the ActivEdge card reader over current card readers and did not mind changing their card insertion behaviour in return for safer and more secure transactions. Consumers inserted their card correctly on the first attempt or were able to quickly determine the proper way to insert the card.

"Skimming devices have become more sophisticated and it was crucial to find an innovative solution to stop this type of fraud, which, today, represents the majority of overall ATM-related fraud, and restore consumers' confidence in ATM transactions," says Bassem Bouzid, senior vice president and managing director, Diebold EMEA. "The ActivEdge card reader is the greatest weapon in the fight against card fraud and will enable financial institutions to guarantee consumers highly secure ATM transactions."

Diebold's revolutionary technology provides an effective security solution that prevents attacks from every vector. ActivEdge encrypting read head prevents criminal modifications to the card reader. Its encrypted communication to the ATM's central processing unit eliminates the ability to fraudulently capture and track card data. In addition, each reader is paired with a specific ATM, precluding installation of fraudulent readers. To counteract card trapping and fishing attacks, ActivEdge features automatic gate-locking functionality, which prevents fraudsters from freeing trapped cards.

For more information, visit the company's website at www.diebold.com

25th February 2015