KOCHI: Multiple thefts in the early hours of Friday have exposed the vulnerabilities in ATMs located in the state with experts commenting that cost-cutting has led to security failure.According to experts, thiefs attempting to loot ATMs in four locations without the bank authorities getting alerted and having a free-run on through three districts skipping police patrols shows that the security system needs to be strengthened.Experts handling security in banking sector said it is a grave fault that timely alerts were not received by bank authorities.“Any kind of extra pressure exerted on an ATM machine or a rise in temperature should have triggered an alarm. An SMS should have been gone to a few persons as soon as there was movement inside the vault of the ATM. This shows that our surveillance is not fool-proof,” said an official in the banking sector requesting anonymity.Sources said off-site ATMs, which unlike on-site ATMs are far from the branch office, have a higher chance of being looted. “Some of the off-site ATMs are outsourced to agencies. Though there are rules stipulating proper checks to ensure that alarms and CCTV cameras work, they are often not followed,” said the official.An ATM machine would have at least four cassettes in which money is stored. There are multiple locks, including a lock to open the outer portion of the ATM machine and another for the vault. There is also a digital lock. However, the ATM thefts on Friday were done using brute force.Vinod Battathiripad, cyber forensics expert, said the ATM thefts were only a traditional crime. “The physical security aspects were compromised to commit the crime. We are taking a huge risk by maintaining such ATM systems. Ideally, only the display screen, the keypad and the slot to give out money should be in the open. The rest should be inside a concrete enclosure,” said Bhattathiripad.An official said the government should interfere to provide ample security.“There should be a proper patrolling in coordination with bank authorities. The banking sector is now cutting costs on securities as the profit from ATM withdrawals is not enough to compensate the maintenance of kiosks,” said the official.

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