There are very few feelings worse than suddenly realising someone has access to your precious monies.

Through a combination of a small card scanning device added to the card-slot on the ATM, which sends the information wirelessly to a nearby receiver, coupled with a small camera that is placed to see you enter your PIN, or sometimes a fake keypad placed over the real one, the scammers get all the info they need to get access to your account.

Reddit-er Bendeton took to the internet to let folks know of a scanning device he discovered while using an ATM.

I can honestly thank Reddit for this...

Bendeton went on to say that he shook the device, found it to be loose, and proceeded to pull the entire thing off the ATM.

However, another person weighed in on the Reddit thread, claiming to be an ATM repair person, and proceeded to give their tips on what to do if you think the ATM might be dodge city:

"ATM Repair guy here. I'm not usually one to hijack a comment, but here are some tips. As stated in other comments, check to see if the card reader seems janky. If it's loose, if it looks like anyone has tampered with it or it is damaged or something about it just looks off, don't use it.

On a Diebold ATM, all of the previous still stands but you should also look for green flashing LEDs on the insert for the card reader. If they are red or nonvisible, do not use the ATM. Tell the bank that they have an issue and either they will check it or a guy like me will show up to check it out.

If you believe you have found a skimmer and you are not at a bank branch or they are closed,LEAVE THE PREMISE, CALL THE COPS AND DO NOT REMOVE IT LIKE OP [Original poster] DID. Your finger prints will be on it which will make it more difficult for the police to recover bad guy prints. Good job. But beyond that, the way these things work is that there is a person nearby watching a bluetooth connection on a laptop. They probably see you. This is a quick way to get mugged.

Good luck and stay safe, folks."

Read the original:

This is how to spot a card-cloning device at your ATM - JOE