Abdul Aziz Al-Furaih, deputy governor of SAMA, said members of the gang were caught within 72 hours after the crime was reported because of the efficiency of the agencies dealing with economic crimes, and the anti-fraud measures undertaken by the banking sector.

The two Chinese men arrested in the city last week had reportedly helped steal SR220,000 from 62 people in 191 transactions. They had sent the copied information to their accomplices abroad, who had then withdrawn the money.

In its alert, SAMA urged banks to strengthen their monitoring at ATMs and provide customers with information on how to protect their cards locally and abroad. Banks should review their fraud detection systems, Al-Furaih said.

Customers must also take precautions including covering their fingers entering pin numbers. They should also inform their banks immediately if they encounter any suspicious behavior by people at ATMs or points of sale, he said.

Talat Hafez, secretary general of the Banking Media and Awareness Committee in the Kingdom, said Saudi banks have taken several measures to prevent the stealing of information at ATMs including monitoring operations originating from abroad.

Hafez told Arab News that only a few ATMs had been tampered with in Riyadh. He said criminals can only steal money if they are able to copy information from a person’s card. He said all ATM machines in the Kingdom are equipped with the latest technology to prevent fraud. There are 16,000 ATMs in the Kingdom, he said.