Poland warns of skimming fraud and reversed PIN myth

Skimming is a method of stealing payment‑card data by capturing magnetic‑stripe information or online form inputs. Criminals place covert devices on ATMs or point‑of‑sale terminals, or use malicious scripts on e‑commerce sites, to collect the card number, expiration date and CVV. The technique remains viable despite EMV chip adoption because many systems still allow fallback to magnetic‑stripe data.

Separately, a long‑circulating internet rumor claims that entering a PIN in reverse order triggers a police alert. Kaspersky’s analysis shows the concept originated from a 1994 US patent proposal that was never implemented. Banks and regulators rejected it due to cost, potential false alarms and the difficulty for stressed victims to correctly reverse their PIN. The myth has been repeatedly debunked, and users are advised to remain vigilant for skimmers and avoid relying on the reversed‑PIN idea for safety.