BankersOnline Security Spotlight

Many banks are dispensing with placing cameras in the ATM area because of bad pictures, cost, or other problems.If possible, I prefer to have cameras placed about six feet above the ATM.The camera will show who was accompanying the person using the ATM.Many times these cameras will photograph family members or people known to the account holder.

Featured Security Webinars

OFAC in 2010 - A Comprehensive Update October 14 —
byTim White
Few regulatory schemes have the broad reach of the collection of laws and regulations loosely called "OFAC rules." Keeping up with that changing OFAC regulatory environment can be a daunting task. Over a billion dollars in OFAC penalties have been imposed in significant enforcement actions in the last year, and the pace of change shows no sign of slowing down. To make sure your institution's OFAC compliance program is efficient and effective, join OFAC expert Tim White for this information-packed two-hour presentation. It could help keep your institution off the OFAC penalties

Nailing Gelatin to a Wall - Monitoring E-banking Activity for Fraud & AML Activity October 28 — byPatricia Cashman
Monitoring elusive e-banking products such as ACH transactions, remote deposit capture (RDC), wire transfers, on-line activity, etc can be difficult to pin down, but BSA/AML and FACTA's Red Flag Guidelines require that you recognize these high-risk activities and then set about mitigating those risks. Additionally, the FFIEC has issued guidance on risk management practices for RDC. The federal regulators have publicly warned financial institutions of the inherent risks of ACH activity without enhancing existing risk management systems and controls.

The Beginning Security Officer November 2 — byBarry Thompson
We have designed this program specifically for the individual who has little or no previous training in financial institution security. If you have been the security officer for less than three years or are newly assigned to the duties in the security area this is the webinar for you. This program provides the ground floor as to what areas of your financial institution you will need special relationships with to be successful. Learn how to gain support from management and staff by developing a risk management committee that will help champion the protection of your bottom line. This webinar give you a whole new perspective with vital insights on how to achieve success as a security officer for a financial institution!

Security Products
in the Banker Store

Robbery Prevention ? "NO HAT" Signs (CLING)

The Robbery Puzzle: So Many Pieces, So Little Time

Robbery Prevention, Response & Aftermath

Welcome to the October Issue of Security Spotlight

Some clear photos of some unusual robbers: "Waldo" and the soccer mom next door - their stories will have you shaking your head.Check out the comparative chart of interesting stats under Alerts and Counterfeits, info in Blogs, Tools and a "last laugh" to complete the Security Shorts for this month!

Hidden in Plain Sight - Clear Photos of Bold Robbers
Here's Waldo...
Investigators didn't have to look hard or far to locate the bandit who robbed a Key Bank branch in Tualatin, OR. Wearing a striped shirt and thick glasses, bearing a strong resemblance to the elusive "Where's Waldo?" cartoon character, Ryan Homsley, 29, walked into Key Bank on Tuesday, September 21st with assertions that he was carrying a bomb in his backpack and demanded cash. Wall posts on Homsley's Facebook page began appearing the day after the robbery, and included references to "DB Cooper" - the infamous skyjacker - a song that inspired him, and claims that he did it for money to pay medical expenses. He also changed his Facebook profile picture to the surveillance photo being circulated in the news and updated his status to "I'm now a bank robber." Homsley's brother, a Portland radio DJ, went public with pleas for his brother to turn himself in, and friends on Facebook urged him to get help. "Waldo" was found and arrested while being treated at a local hospital.

Definitely Not Mother of the Year!
The average mom keeps a busy schedule, with to-do lists that include cleaning, shopping, and getting the kids off to school. Erica Anderson, a 37-year-old mom of two, from Grants Pass, OR managed to do it all in one day and still pick up the kids from school on time. Adding bank robbery to her schedule on September 21st, Anderson dropped by a local Umpqua Bank branch on her way to pick up her kids, where she handed the teller a note requesting that she fill a bag with money. The note further instructed the teller to wait fifteen minutes before calling the police, "or else two kids wouldn?t make it home from school". With the help of a witness? description of Anderson, her accomplice and the getaway car, police were able to track her down to her home. When the cops pulled into her driveway, she?d just returned home with her girls, who were enjoying an after-school ice cream snack. Talk about juggling work and parenting! Both Anderson and her accomplice, Joshua K. Deeter Tseu, are being held on $50,000 bail and are charged with first-degree theft and second-degree robbery.

Check our Bank Robbery page for photos and information on all the latest robbery suspects.


Stringing Them Together, or
One Robbery Leads to Another

Does One Robbery Beget Another? -We know that communicating with your peers is important. This can be done on the BOL threads in the public or private security forums.Networking with your peers locally is important, too. When one bank is robbed, another in that area may also be robbed. This doesn't mean the same thief is after every bank, as one successful robbery may "inspire" someone else desperate for money. Such may have been the case in Central Texas.On Sept 27, the Eisenhauer Bank was robbed in Killeen, Texas. The police provided information and a photo in this news release.Security Officers in the local area should be aware of these events and take prompt action to ensure that their staff has been trained.Only four days later, a credit union only blocks down the street was robbed. Here is that press release.While the two incidents do not appear related, it is important to take action when something like this happens. Security reminders are a good thing to have during brief morning meetings.

Linking Bank Robberies Mile by Mile -Killeen isn't unique.Law enforcement is putting together clues that link bank robberies from North Texas to hundreds of miles south, along I-35.This thief has robbed seventeen banks and the FBI is working on stopping this armed robber.Watching this news video may provide you with clues law enforcement finds helpful and why this thief is so dangerous.

Inside and Outside the Box...and Around the Corner -When investigating a robbery or theft from a bank, think outside the box.It isn't always a clear cut case of an insider stealing with a debit ticket, or an outsider stealing with a gun. Consider the case of Kyle Lightner, a bank teller at the Texas Trust Credit Union in Arlington, Texas.After Tyce Von Franklin was stopped for speeding and found to have a gun, marijuana, and a large amount of cash, he was arrested for this and a bank robbery. He stole $183,000 earlier in the day, with the help of Lightner.

Franklin hid in a bathroom and emerged after closing. Lightner was one of the tellers who was robbed. As the investigation went on, it was found that Lightner was staying late that day and that he had been sending text messages. The messages were actually cues and reminders to Franklin. Lightner orchestrated the robbery...and this gets better. You may have thought to yourself that the $183,000 is a larger than normal amount for a robbery, so is $148,794. That is the amount stolen in an unsolved robbery at Compass Bank where Lightner was working and was taken hostage and then locked in the vault by a man matching Franklin's description. That robbery is now associated with this one.

The Last Laugh -On the lighter side, your staff is trained to cross-sell products to customers. In one bank in Watsonville, CA this is carried to the next level.Mark Smith entered the bank and said he had a bomb. He wanted $2,000 so that his friend could pay his rent. The bank manager told Smith that what he needed was a loan. As the manager went to get loan papers, other employees kept Smith busy and distracted. The manager called 911 and Smith was arrested.

Alerts & Counterfeits
September was a slow month for alerts. That was certainly a good thing. There were only nine alerts and all were from the FDIC. Of the nine, seven states were listed, so the alerts were spread among WI (2), MA, PA, TX, LA (2), CA and MO. Six counterfeit cashier's checks were listed, in addition to two counterfeit official checks and one counterfeit treasurer's check.

This month we'll also look at some statistics by quarter.The counterfeit cashier's checks declined to a more common number in the third quarter.Some odd items in the second quarter, money orders and official bank checks, were replaced by new items, bank checks and treasurer's checks.While the former may be a slight variation on the thieves' counterfeit items, treasurer's checks are new.These four items were reported in only two states, MA (3) and RI.

Putting your staff on notice when new items are reported is one way to help avoid losses, especially if you are in an area that seems to be targeted by a new scam such as treasury checks last month, but by far, the items of choice for thieves are cashier's checks and official checks.


The easiest way to ensure you don't miss a notification and to see these trends is to read your daily Compliance Briefing or check our Alerts and Counterfeits page.

CrimeDex– an Eclectic Collection
September's CrimeDex alerts are an example of variety. The month started off with a plea for information about a high-flying customer from Mexico City visiting Arkansas for medical treatment. He claimed that his card had been compromised and had $20,000 in fraudulent charges on it. The banker was suspicious about the claim. A pair of alerts on serial bank robbers arrived on September 8 from opposite sides of the country. Oregon and Massachusetts banks were involved. A casino in Atlantic City reported that it had been scammed by someone using its online registration portal. A credit union in California said that it had been cased by an individual with a record of both armed robbery and checking account fraud. Finally, as the month drew to a close, there was an alert about a loan modification/debt restructuring scam run by an individual at his home in California. Add in alerts on counterfeit checks and credit cards, bank robbers, ID theft and more, and you have a real potpourri of examples you can use in security training to help your staff familiarize themselves with the methods being used by thieves, scam artists and other crooks to steal and defraud.

Alerts like these and others help keep BOL CrimeDex subscribers current on scam techniques, suspects operating in their areas, and other threats to their institution's security. For more information, check out BOL CrimeDex.

The new $100 bills were scheduled to be released in February 2011. We told you last month that the initial release period is an opportune time for crooks to counterfeit new bills because they are unfamiliar to everyone. Forget the release date. They've been delayed. Read why and get more info on this at the BOL Security Blog post from Oct. 1, 2010.

As Security Officer you may find yourself tasked with responding to a subpoena or other federal government request for your customers' records. This means the Right to Financial Privacy rules apply and you'll need a Certificate of Compliance.Be sure to check out this new variation on the form, contributed by BOL user SoccerMomQueen, in the BOL Banker Tools.

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