Media Releases

30 March 2006

Protect Your PIN

Protect your PIN number at ATM and EFTPOS machines warns Consumer Affairs Minister Judith Tizard. This advice follows a recent case of skimming in Auckland, where thousands of dollars were removed from people's accounts".

These crooks need two pieces of information – one is the magnetic strip from your card and the other is your PIN number. So we can foil them if we protect our PINs."

"My advice to consumers is – please don't share your PIN number; be vigilant when using ATMs or EFTPOS; cover your hand when you're entering your PIN; feel free to ask the person in the queue behind you to step back a bit, and check your bank statements regularly."

"I'm encouraging retailers to provide cradles, to cover customers' hands when they're entering pin numbers."

"The banks are to be congratulated for doing the right thing – for responding promptly and reimbursing the stolen money."

"We're working across government to keep ahead of these techno-savvy organised criminals."