Republic Bank’s Information Security and Card Operations teams continue to defend client accounts against the constant threat of fraudulent activity. Our teams work in partnership with our technology and product vendors to mitigate risks to our clients.

We’ve seen a recent uptick in a scheme called ‘Jackpotting’ where fraudsters target ATMs and ITMs with malicious software (malware) in an attempt to create a massive payday using your card credentials. Due to this increase, we’ve moved quickly to ensure all of our ITMs are meeting the most recent security recommendations.

As a result, our ITMs and other ATM transactions using a Republic Bank debit card will only allow integrated circuit, or chip, transactions. Chips are more secure than the traditional magnetic stripe on the back of your card and are much more difficult for fraudsters to duplicate.

What does this mean for you?

While you may be unaware, our ITMs and most modern card devices attempt to utilize the chips on your card to complete a transaction. Until now, if your chip failed to be read, the ITM would “fallback” to utilizing the information stored on the magnetic stripe.

Due to the increasing number of skimming devices that can steal information from that stripe then create a duplicate card, Mastercard has recommended disabling this functionality at ATMs and ITMs to better protect cardholders.

For this reason, if you are unable to complete a transaction at our ITM, it is possible that your chip was not able to be read. This could be caused by something as simple as a dirty or malfunctioning chip, so wipe away any dirt or debris from your card and try again.

If you are still unable to complete your transaction, please use the option to speak to a live Republic banker at the ITM or visit us inside one of our Banking Centers – they can help you with your transaction and order a replacement card for you too.

Thank you for your continued relationship with Republic Bank!