THE scale of a Weymouth cashpoint scam is beginning to emerge as victims come forward to tell how money was stolen from their accounts.

The Echo revealed yesterday how potentially hundreds of people may have fallen victim to the ‘skimming’ fraud when cash machines in the town were tampered with.

As customers have not told the police but instead gone direct to their banks to report the matter, the number of people affected and the amounts involved are not known. The Echo is aware, however, that at least 50 people have contacted one local bank branch to report money going missing from their accounts.

Following our story yesterday, eight people have told us they have fallen victim to the fraud. They bank with different institutions and between them the amount involved totals more than £2,200.

Among them is taxi driver Terina Cashman from Sutton Poyntz who had £780 taken from her Barclays account. She only realised this when she tried to pay for more than £100 worth of shopping in Asda and her bank card was rejected three times.

Luckily she was with her daughter, who was able to withdraw money and pay for the shopping.

Mrs Cashman, 47, praised her bank for the way it handled the situation.

She said: “In all, 12 transactions were attempted on my card but only three were cleared with one of those being quite a significant amount. When they told me it had been done in Thailand I thought: ‘I wish I was there.’ “Someone’s obviously having a good time at my expense. It sounds like a big operation because when I told my friend they said the same thing had happened to a member of their family.”

Mrs Cashman, who is married to Patrick and has two daughters Chelci, 17, and Brandi, 15, added: “Barclays have been brilliant. I’ve had to go through a fraud procedure but I will get my money back.

“It has taught me to be more vigilant. I guess we’re a bit naive when it comes to these devices on cash machines.

“It’s a shock to the system and it does help to educate you. You don’t think it would happen in Weymouth, but then maybe smaller towns are easier targets than cities.”

Dave Wolstencroft, 51, of Wyke Regis, said more than £700 was fraudulently taken from a joint First Direct account he shares with wife Julie.

Hospital maintenance worker Mr Wolstencroft said: “It started off with a withdrawal of £47, which I think was a way of testing to see if it worked before larger amounts were taken. This experience can be distressing but at the end of the day we will get the money back. I hope we’re not charged for going over the overdraft though.

“I do think there should be better security systems in place.”

• Were you a victim? Let us know. Call newsdesk on 01305 830999 or email newsdesk@dorsetecho.co.uk

How to stay safe using ATM machines

Skimming works when a device is secretly fitted at an ATM so it can read a card’s electronic data.

A mini camera is also attached to record the PIN number.

Fraudsters then transfer this information to a fake card which is used in countries that do not use the chip and PIN system.

People will often be unaware of this kind of fraud until their statement arrives.

Advice when using a cashpoint.

• Avoid using a cashpoint if there are suspicious looking people around it

• Check to see if there are any suspicious looking devices or evidence that the cashpoint has been tampered with

• If there are any additional attachments over the card entry slot, do not use the machine

• Shield your PIN with your hand and stand close when typing

• If your card gets jammed or retained, report it to your bank

• Make sure others in the queue are a good distance away

• Never reveal your PIN to anyone, even if someone claims to be from a bank

• Be cautious of strangers offering help or distracting you

• Regularly check your account to make sure there is no suspicious activity

* If you have been a victim of cashpoint fraud report it to your card issuer