Five arrested for hacking into ATMs and stealing $3.2 million

Law enforcement authorities from Europe and Asia have arrested five members of an international cybercriminal group that specialized in hacking into automated teller machine (ATMs).

The investigation began in early 2016, according to Europol. Three suspects were arrested in Taiwan, one in Romania, and one in Belarus. Most of them had multiple citizenships and could travel easily between countries, the agency said Friday.

Hacking into ATMs to steal money is nothing new, and there are malware programs built specifically for such machines that allow criminals to withdraw money using hidden commands.

To infect ATMs with such malware most attackers either receive help from bank insiders or buy service keys that can be used to open the front panels of ATMs and access their communications ports.

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