Satellite-monitored chips at existing ATMs and thick concrete walls around new ones are among the recommendations made for preventing theft.

A commission comprising three government agencies has also called for exploring the possibility of activating the self-destruction of cash ability of an ATM (automated teller machines) if it is exposed to theft, a local daily has reported.

Earlier, representatives of the Directorate of Public Security, Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) explored mechanisms to minimize the uprooting and stealing of ATMs.

To ensure more safety, the commission also recommended that ATMs be installed at fuel stations and other service centers along highways with cameras and alarm system to guard theft and fires.

For new ATMs, the panel recommended that two 5-inch thick concrete walls be built on both sides of the machines. However, it said, the existing ATMs should be inside kiosks surrounded by steel bumpers from four sides.

The commission stressed that SAMA prepares a study on the activation of self-destruction of money in case ATMs are forcibly opened or exposed to strong vibration.

The panel also recommended the formation of security commissions consisting of the region’s police and SAMA which should carry out visits to the ATM locations and submit reports regularly.