IoT Based ATM Surveillance

7 min readMar 1, 2022

What is IoT based ATM Surveillance?

An automated teller machine (ATM) can be called as an electronic banking outlet that allows customers to complete the basic transactions without the aid of a branch representative. These are really convenient, allow consumers to perform quick self-service transactions such as cash deposits, cash withdrawals, bill payments, and transfers between accounts. In the daily changing updated technological world, where financial transactions are made with our fingertips that is with the help of a smartphone using an Internet connection, but we still feel the need to pay cash.

As the demand for cash goes higher, the need of more ATMs comes into place. Security and safety play a crucial part in the development of ATMs. According to a research study and data analysis the number of crimes is in fact growing rapidly in the last few years. The attacks are mostly done physically by causing external damage to machines and then theft of huge amount of money, and also hacking the networks which can be very dangerous. The ATM security system is implemented using Internet of Things and GPS module. This idea mainly focuses on the security of the developed ATM system, when any physical attack take place then information is sent as notification alert and also buzzer is present which alerts and alarms the nearby areas. Talking about the surveillance we have used the ESP32 for live video streaming and monitoring the activity inside the ATM and we track the location i.e, Longitude and Latitude using the GPS module. The system is connected via WiFi to the Blynk cloud service and it can be also viewed on a smartphone. We send the collected data to the Blynk cloud, and when the values received exceeds the threshold values, we receive a notification alert.

Features:

Smart surveillance — live video streaming
Alert based system — notifications
Real-time monitoring
Real-time data analysis

Motivation:

Cosmos Bank ATM Heist: A n attack attributed to the North Korean-linked Lazarus Group was responsible for stealing US $13.5 million from India’s Cosmos Bank in an aggressive attack that has exposed limitations in the measure’s banks use to defend against targeted cyber threats. It is still unclear how the threat actors managed to initially infiltrate the bank’s network. According to a security research, based on how this threat actor typically operates, the attackers broke in via a spear-phishing email and then moved laterally, within the bank’s network, compromising the institution’s ATM infrastructure. This was not the typical basic card-not-present (CNP) or jackpotting attack. The attack was a more advanced, well-planned, and highly-coordinated operation that focused on the bank’s infrastructure, effectively bypassing the four main layers of defense per Europol ATM attack mitigation guidance.
Louisville ATM Heist: A Louisville man was charged after an alleged spree of multiple robberies at ATM machines across the city, according to Louisville Metro Police. Armond Langford, 28, was charged with eight counts of robbery-first degree, seven counts of robbery-second degree, two charges of theft by unlawful taking and two charges of attempted theft by unlawful taking. According to the arrest report, Langford was listed as a suspect in a string of robberies that began on August 13. LMPD asked for the public’s assistance in identifying the suspect on Nov. 10 after being caught on camera. At the time, police said the suspect had committed robberies at around 15 ATM locations. Investigation revealed the suspect as Langford, who was located on Nov. 19 entering a restaurant on the 1800 block of West Muhammad Ali Boulevard. The report states that Langford would approach victims while at drive-thru ATMs and steal the money they were withdrawing. Police said most of the incidents involved Langford approaching the victim and stealing the money while armed with a handgun, a knife, or a rock.
India cases- Pune: ATM heist took place in Chakan in Pune district where 4 burglars equipped with walkie talkies broke the cash dispenser of the ATM, 2 of them were caught by the police personnel and 2 managed to flee away.
Chandigarh: ATM thefts in Chandigarh rose to a higher level, had happened after the first lockdown when they were deserted and there weren’t any security guards. In Mohali, nearly 16 lacs rupees were robbed from an ATM, In Kishangarh burglars managed to steal 7.64 lacs from an ATM kiosk.
Hyderabad: Not only in the northern parts of India, but also southern regions this crime has really increased a lot, a 21-year-old youth was being arrested by the police persons when a software employee of a firm was at gunpoint by the guy inside an ATM Centre in Hyderabad. He had also cause physical injuries to the employee.
Chennai: Two people looted nearly 19 ATMs in Chennai by placing a technical glitch in the cameras and this was reported by many areas of the city. The duo had also forged their documents in the SBI and they had done the robberies using very high technological devices.
Bhubaneshwar: Two people were arrested by the Police when they were found robbing an ATM, amount of 9 lakh was recovered from the thieves.

Companies that deal in ATM surveillance:

Securens: Every ATM is installed with Various Sensors that are connected to an Intrusion alarm panel to detect intrusion. CCTV Cameras, Siren and 2-way audio device are installed to actively prevent a crime. The Intrusion Alarm panel, CCTVs and 2-way audio are connected to a central Command Centre. The Intrusion Alarm panel is secured for tampering using Contact sensor and vibration sensors.
IGZY: This company provides various features for their clients. Banking surveillance system equipped with a unified web-based dashboard to analyze metric representation, reports & actionable insights. The bank and ATM security solution provides the ability to customize the platform or devices as per the customer requirement for greater benefits. Providing a platform and managed services, we help you from procurement to installation and maintenance of banking security systems.
ZICOM: The Indian company Zicom is one of the biggest security electronics companies in Southern Asia. Their innovations in security systems have led the company to become a leading force in the market during the past two decades and to establish themselves as key players in the industry. Zicom was already a provider of a wide range of security products and had a substantial understanding of India’s security market. They created — through one of the arms of their wider portfolio — a new company ‘Security as a Service’ (SAAS). This new service placed the use of modern technology at its centre with the offer of being able to reduce the need for a physical presence of security at every site 24 hours per day. It also meant that through SAAS Zicom can provide a comprehensive service. This draws a variety of strands into a single package — with resultant savings and benefits for their clients. These include being able to measure customer footfall, and provide data that can be used for planning and can be shared with third parties.
iVIS: innovated a proactive security system that raises an alarm even before the occurrence of a crime, keeping the local emergency authorities and police in the loop, thereby preventing any untoward event. iVIS surveillance system uses a combination of the best of e-surveillance technology, 24x7 real-time monitoring service and multiple onsite interventions. Our clients have seen 98% reduction in theft and vandalism and 70% reduction in costs. iVIS surveillance camera equipment can be programmed for important video analytics such as virtual trip wires, that raise alarm when someone tries to cross these virtual lines, face recognition to allow only authentic people to enter a particular zone, masking in surveillance sensitive areas, etc.

Components Required:

Hardware

Node MCU
DHT22 sensor
GPS module
Vibration sensor
Buzzer
ESP32 cam module

Software

Arduino IDE
Blynk cloud

Real-Time Implementation:

Connections:

Connections:

The DHT22 sensor is connected to the D6 pin of the NodeMCU board, Vcc connected to 5V and GND to GND.
The Vibration sensor is connected to the D0 pin of the NodeMCU board,Vcc connected to 5V and GND to GND.
The GPS module is connected to the D1 and D2 pin of the NodeMCU board, Vcc connected to 5V and GND to GND.
The ESP32 Cam module is connected with the help of FTDI programmer module.

Final Output:

App Output