ATM skimmer -- could you spot it in the wild?

By Cory Doctorow at 10:23 am Saturday, Jan 16

Brian Krebs's "Krebs on Security" features an ATM skimmer that is chillingly well-camouflaged. After seeing photos of early, crude skimmers -- devices that capture your card number and work in concert with a hidden camera that records you punching in your PIN -- I assumed that I could rely on my own powers of observation to keep from falling victim to one. Now I don't think I can be so sanguine. Be sure to follow some of the links in the post for some hair-raising examples of the form.

This particular skimmer was found Dec. 6, 2009, attached to the front of a Citibank ATM in Woodland Hills, Calif. Would you have been able to spot this?

This is fairly professional job: Notice how the bulk of the electronics fit into the flap below the card acceptance slot. Also, check out the tiny pinhole camera (pictured below), ostensibly designed to switch on and record the victim's movements as he or she enters their PIN at the ATM.

Would You Have Spotted the Fraud? (via Neatorama)