Your body heat may be a thief's best weapon
If you live near the University of California at San Diego, you may want to venture elsewhere if you need grab some cash at the ATM. Researchers at the school have figured out an exceedingly easy way to identify ATM pin numbers, and the method uses your own body heat against you. With the help of a thermal imaging camera, the researchers were able to glean the secret digits of ATM users without ever seeing them press the buttons.
The team found that once an ATM customer completes their transaction, an individual armed with a heat-sensing camera could swoop in and take a snapshot of the keypad. As the heat from the button presses cools, the crook could easily determine what buttons were pressed, and even in what order. In testing, if the picture was snapped within 10 seconds of a customer leaving the ATM, the success rate of predicting the correct sequence was a staggering 80%. If 45 seconds had passed, that rate dropped to 60%.
The type of keys an ATM uses are also a factor, with metal buttons being the least vulnerable to thermal thieves. Plastic pads were found to hold the heat much longer, making the scam possible. Thankfully, thermal imaging cameras are considerably more expensive than your standard point-and-shoot, and a pin number on its own is nearly useless without the matching credit card or other personal information.
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