Credit card data hacked, crores stolen

The gang, including two web designers, skimmed and cloned credit and debit cards using a complex modus operandi of hacking, international IP addresses, internet hawala, spying and electronic data theft. Five members of the gang have been arrested.

Among the sophisticated electronic equipment recovered from them are: 15 point of sale (electronic draft capture) skimming machines, one ATM data skimming machine, ATM dome cameras, electronic magnetic writers, card printers and ATM pin pad skimmer machines. They even placed spy cameras at ATMs which picked up the PINs of users. Police seized Rs 5 lakh, an Audi and a Chevrolet from them. Cyberabad Police Commissioner D Tirumala Rao said the gang had actually set up a lab at Motinagar, Hyderabad, complete with sophisticated equipment worth over Rs 50 lakh.

The racket came to light last May when people who visited two malls complained that huge amounts were withdrawn from their accounts.

Initial investigations revealed the customers had been lured to become members of a “Make-A-Deal” scheme by paying Rs 50 through their credit or debit cards. The scheme offered free recharge of Rs 250 on their mobile phones. When customers swiped their cards, the encrypted data was skimmed off by the

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