Getting cash from an ATM is usually one of those everyday errands nobody thinks twice about. But behind the screen, a growing cybercrime trend is turning some machines into instant cash dispensers for thieves.
The FBI says ATM “jackpotting” incidents are rising across the United States, with more than 700 cases reported in 2025 alone and losses topping $20 million.
What ATM jackpotting means for banks and operators
Jackpotting is not the same as stealing someone’s debit card data. In practical terms, that means criminals are going after the ATM itself. According to the FBI, attackers use malware such as “Ploutus” to infect a machine and force it to spit out bills without a bank card, customer account, or bank approval. The agency says the malware can be adapted across different ATM brands because it exploits weaknesses in Windows-based systems.
That is what makes this trend especially troubling for banks and ATM operators. The cash can be drained in minutes, and because the attack does not rely on a customer transaction, it can be harder to detect in real time. For the most part, ordinary account holders are not the direct victims here. Financial institutions are the ones absorbing the hit.
FBI and Justice Department data show the scale of the threat
The scale is getting harder to ignore. The FBI says it has identified about 1,900 ATM jackpotting incidents nationwide since 2020. And federal prosecutors are already tying some of those cases to larger criminal networks.
On February 20, 2026, the Justice Department announced that a federal grand jury in Nebraska had charged six more people in an international ATM jackpotting conspiracy, bringing the total number of charged defendants to 93. Prosecutors also said a December 2025 indictment alleged that Tren de Aragua used jackpotting attacks across the country to steal and move millions of dollars.
What the FBI wants banks to watch for now
So what should people keep in mind? Right now, this is less a warning for individual bank customers than for the companies running the machines. The FBI is urging banks and ATM operators to watch for both physical and digital signs of compromise and to notify law enforcement quickly when something looks off.
That may sound technical, but the real-world issue is simple enough. A machine people trust for quick cash can become a weak point in the financial system.
The press release was published on the FBI website.
