as a consequence of it occurs5:fifty fivethere have been zero financial institution robberies in Denmark final 12 months. however thieves are nonetheless preserving busy
referring to crime, money is now not king — not decrease than in Denmark.
For the primary time ever, the nation recorded zero financial institution robberies in 2022, in accordance with Finance Denmark, the commerce affiliation that represents the nation’s banks.
in exact actuality, financial institution robberies have been ticking downward for better than a decade. In 2021, there was simply one.
that is a dramatic shift from 20 years in the past when Denmark noticed about 220 financial institution robberies a 12 months, says Michael Busk-Jepsen, Finance Denmark’s director of digitization.
“It was very good to see this statistic, particularly as a outcomes of people working inside the banks, and that they are not being uncovered to that anymore,” Busk-Jepsen instructed as a consequence of it occurs host Nil Köksal.
Busk-Jepsen credit beefed-up safety measures and a transfer in the direction of cashless transitions. however regardless of the welcome change, he warns that criminals inside the digital period are discovering new methods to choose people’s pockets.
Traumatized financial institution tellers, lethal holdups
Busk-Jepsen says that simply a few many years in the past, financial institution robberies have been virtually a day-after-day prevalence in Denmark.
the implications for financial institution workers, clients and legal guidelines enforcement officers have been at best traumatic — and at worst lethal.
that is why the Danish financial institution workers’ union on Tuesday welcomed the latest information.
“it is simply great,” spokesman Steen Lund Olsen mentioned in a press launch, noting that robberies “put a very extreme strain on the affected workers.”
Busk-Jepsen says these crimes have been widespread for two causes. One, it was straightforward. And two, it was fruitful.
“The enterprise case was, so to converse, too good for the robbers. It was too straightforward to get away with the money from the banks,” he mentioned. “That was not a healthful place to be at, so we decided to do one factor about it.”
the very very first factor monetary institutions did was beef up safety, he mentioned. Between 2000 and 2010, Busk-Jepsen says Danish banks centered on enhancing their surveillance measures, alarm packages and relationships with police.
That helped, Busk-Jepsen mentioned. however the factor that basically made a distinction was the transfer away from money.
starting in 2005, he says, charge by playing cards started superseding charge by money in Denmark. That pattern has solely continued.
immediately, Busk-Jepsen says many banks do not even have money on the premises.
Finance Denmark says about 20 financial institution branches throughout the nation at the second have money holdings. The quantity of financial institution branches has additionally fallen from 219 in 1991 to fifty six in 2021, it mentioned.
If there isn’t any paper, Busk-Jepsen says, there’s not a lot level in a caper.
Initially, robbers switched their consideration from financial institution branches to automated banking machines, with such assaults peaking at 18 in 2016.
however these, too, have come proper down to zero amid greater surveillance and technical safety, the commerce affiliation mentioned.
Digital crime on the rise
however merely as a consequence of your money’s now not saved in a protected, does not indicate it is protected. As banking turns into an more and more on-line exercise, so does crime.
“in any case, [thieves] went digital like all people else,” Busk-Jepsen mentioned. “internet banking was launched, and the numbers of diverse types of digital frauds are simply rising inside the meantime.”
which will imply cyberattacks in the direction of banks, Busk-Jepsen says. however most typically, digital fraudsters are likely to go proper to the supply and goal clients immediately.
anyone can fall sufferer to a grift on-line, he mentioned, however the aged are a very weak goal.
To push again, he says banks are investing closely in public consciousness campaigns educating clients ideas on how to watch out for scammers.
“inside the older days, the criminals went for the bodily financial institution, whereas immediately the criminals, they go for the digital buyer,” Busk-Jepsen mentioned.
With information from The associated Press. Interview with Michael Busk-Jepsen produced by Chris Trowbridge.
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