ATM scams, to be investigated by House committee

ATM pinpad (Wikipedia photo)

MANILA, Philippines – The House of Representatives committee on banks, chaired by Sonny Collantes, is set to probe reported scams on automated teller machines (ATM).

A hearing will be held next week to look into said scams, which involve the unauthorized withdrawal of cash from ATM accounts.

Collantes mentioned the possibility the private banks, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, and other stakeholders would be called upon to further expose the matter and to give their opinions on possible ways to prevent the unauthorized withdrawals.

“Titignan namin kung ito ay nangyayari, ito baga ay may mga kasabawat na konektado sa bangko at gusto rin namin marinig ang mga bangko kung ano ba ang mga ginagawa nilang pamamaraan upang sa ganoon ay upang maiwasan ang mga ganitong paggamit ng mga masasamang loob sa mga ATM na sinasamantala ang ating mga kababayan,” Collantes said.

In recent weeks, two clients of the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) fell victim to the scam, reportedly losing P80,000 and P100,000, in unauthorized withdrawals.

BPI said that they initially received reports of “abnormal transactions on a specific BPI ATM,” and that the company has already done its investigations.

It added that the situation with one of the victimized clients “has been fully rectified and the amount reimbursed upon confirmation of the incident,” and likewise appealed to its clients to report any suspicious incidents.