In response to rising consumer fears of crime at automated teller machines, several financial institutions are testing 911 "emergency buttons" that enable customers to contact police while using an ATM.
Top ATM Security Features
Percentage of consumers finding each valuableAdequate lighting 93%Alarm button 91%Telephone 84%Secret code for alarm 82%Camera 81%
Source: Synergistics Research Corp.
The institutions involved in testing include Star Banc Corp. in Cincinnati, Wells Fargo & Co. in San Francisco, and a number of smaller banks and credit unions in the South.
Consumers generally approve of a direct connection between ATM sites and a 911 operator, but many law enforcement agencies frown on them, claiming the connections would increase the number of false alarms.
Data gathered from test cases are expected to help determine whether the perceptions of the police and of consumers have any merit.
"I have encouraged the deployers of this technology to gather data about how many times it is used [and] to what effect," said Barry Schreiber, a criminal justice professor at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota who is recognized as a leading U.S. expert on ATM security.
The buttons "have some potential in deterring crime," he said, "but there isn't any information out there right now that shows what they are accomplishing."
Reliable statistics on the incidence of ATM crime are hard to come by, mainly because banks are reluctant to publicize the events.
In addition, few police departments break out statistics on ATM crime.
However, there is little doubt that ATM crime is getting more public attention than ever before.
In the mainstream media, ATM crime has become an area of coverage unto itself, "replacing carjacking as the tabloid news story of choice," according to one observer.
The effect of this publicity on consumers is, in large measure, responsible for banks' move toward the emergency buttons.
The buttons "are just a way to alleviate some anxiety that people may feel, especially if they are using an ATM at night in a walkup situation," said Christopher Sontag, vice president of electronic banking at $8 billion-asset Star Banc.
Star has installed emergency buttons at 10 ATM sites in Ohio. At these ATMs, a microphone and speaker are attached to the terminal's front face.
The speaker and microphone, which connect a customer directly with a 911 operator, can only be activated after a customer has inserted a card into the ATM.
This feature is expected to allay many police fears about false alarms.
"Presumably, kids running by on the street are not going to be able to hit a button to see if the cops show up," said Mr. Schreiber.
False alarms were "really the only concerns the police had, and once we told them you had to insert the card, they said, that it's great," said Mr. Sontag.
Another feature making abuse of 911 buttons more difficult is the fact that hitting the button does not automatically summon police to the ATM.
When punched, the emergency button sends information about the location of the ATM site to a 911 operator who then speaks with the ATM customer to determine the nature of the emergency.
Star and Wells Fargo will continue to test the emergency buttons during the next six to nine months to evaluate networkwide rollouts.
Observers said the two banks' decisions on the technology -- which costs about $1,200 per machine -- could have a significant effect on whether other institutions embrace it.
Star operates about 300 ATMs; Wells has more than 1,700.
Both rank on the American Banker's list of the top 50 ATM owners.
