With the city police insisting on tougher security at ATM kiosks in the city, bankers are working hard to meet the three-day deadline to implement the stringent measures.
City Police Commissioner Raghavendra H. Auradkar had issued orders that all banks provided security guards, alarm systems and CCTV cameras inside and outside ATMs, by 4 p.m. on Sunday.
N. Parthasarathy, general manager, risk management and IT, State Bank of Mysore, said all their ATM centres already have security guards at night. “Now we have instructed all our zonal heads to provide security round the clock. While there is a surveillance camera installed inside the ATM machine, CCTV cameras will also be installed according to the directions,” he said.
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However, bankers say, the “off-site” cameras that are to be installed outside the kiosks could be an issue. “We will follow all the orders but will have to work out the issue regarding the installation of the cameras outside so that the footage can be monitored,” Mr. Parthasarathy said. The bank was considering holding discussions with others to come up with ideas to efficiently manage the cost involved, he said.
“We are also looking at other precautionary measures such as locking ATM kiosk shutters so that only bank officials can down the shutters when needed or while loading cash. Some also raised the concept of doors that can only be opened once the customer slides the card into a slot. However, the magnetic recognition system tends to wear off in a year or two. We need to work on that as well,” Mr. Parthasarathy said.