UAE banks target foreign transactions in ATM fraud case

INTERNATIONAL CRIME: UAE banks say they are monitoring foreign transactions. (Getty Images)

UAE banks are restricting international transactions to contain the large-scale card fraud by overseas gangs that surfaced last week, the UAE Gulf News reported on Monday.

"Stopping international transactions is the key to containing the damage," Saif Al-Shehi, senior general manager of retail banking at National Bank of Abu Dhabi, told the paper.

The bank initially blocked transactions in just a small number of countries, but now has extended it to most of the world, he said. Banks are making exceptions for some international transactions on an individual basis, he added.

He added that the number of international transactions being rejected is ten times more than those that are allowed, including those from point of sales. 

The bank will be issuing new cards to all its customers by Oct. 1, Al-Shehi told the paper.

Emirates NBD told the paper that the bank has blocked two to three percent of transactions in 20 countries.

Visa International, one of the major two card networks, warned Barclays in August that the security of 1,469 debit and credit was compromised after the network's UAE database had been hacked, the paper said.

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Adding insult to injury
Posted by David, Dubai on Monday 22 September 2008 at 12:37 UAE time

Just to put the icing on the cake of my atm woes with HSBC, on my first attempt to get some money out of one of their machines in Dubai on my return from abroad, the machine "swallowed" the card. Now I have to wait 3 or 4 days for a replacement.

But, the good news is that I could take money out of the account over the counter without providing any proof of identity whatsoever.

ATM use abroad
Posted by David, Dubai on Sunday 21 September 2008 at 13:55 UAE time


Just before I went to Moscow last week I called HSBC to check that my ATM card would be ok in Russia, and was assured that it would be, although maybe with a lower daily withdrawal limit.

On reaching Moscow, the card did not work in any ATM, so I called the HSBC help line to be advised that the card would only work in an HSBC atm machine. The first HSBC atm in Russia is due to be opened next month. Thanks HSBC!

Luckily my visa card worked, but there was only one bank (Austrian) that would allow me to draw cash out on it.

I did not receive any sms from HSBC advising me of the need to change my pin number (but did receive 250 identical messages from them in a 45 minute period a few weeks ago telling me about a new atm machine-in Dubai).

If it wasn't far too much trouble to change my bank-and if I thought that any of the others were any better-then I would abandon HSBC tomorrow. Not because of the measures that they took to minimise fraud, but the way they treated a customer of over 20 years standing who was in a potentially difficult situation.

I'm not even going to complain to their mangement-I know it would be a waste of time.

what about travellers?
Posted by LJ on Tuesday 16 September 2008 at 18:10 UAE time


too bad if you are travelling and suddenly find yourself without any money..... especially areas where you cant get by on credit cards or dont have credit cards. possibly a good move to limit fraudulent use but its going to leave a lot of people in a tight spot! Doesnt sound like the banks have taken that into consideration!

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