The banking industry just can’t get a break. First, their big rainmaker –  the subprime mortgage — came under attack, and now their automated teller machines are in the line of fire. What’s a money changer to do?

ATMs, which revolutionized the way bank customers access their cash, haven’t just added billions in fees  to banking coffers, they’ve also drastically reduced the costs associated with human tellers doing those transactions.

Now, a savvy and well-known hacker claims to have created a multi-platform rootkit for the machines. What’s more, he plans to unveil it to the world this summer with a talk he’s calling “Jackpotting Automated Teller Machines,” at the Black Hat security conference in Las Vegas, July 28 and 29.

Security researcher Barnaby Jack touts his talk this way: “I’ve always liked the scene in Terminator 2 where John Connor walks up to an ATM, interfaces his Atari to the card reader and retrieves cash from the machine. I think I’ve got that kid beat.

“The most prevalent attacks on Automated Teller Machines typically involve the use of card skimmers, or the physical theft of the machines themselves. Rarely do we see any targeted attacks on the underlying software.

“Last year, there was one ATM; this year, I’m doubling down and bringing two new model ATMs from two major vendors. I will demonstrate both local and remote attacks, and I will reveal a multi-platform ATM rootkit. Finally, I will discuss protection mechanisms that ATM manufacturers can implement to safeguard against these attacks.”

Jack had planned to deliver a talk at the conference on the security vulnerabilities of ATMs, but his appearance was canceled at the last minute when his employer, Juniper Networks, feared what he had to say might be misused by the unscrupulous.

To get around that particular muzzle, Jack’s switched employers and now works for the computer security services firm IOActive.

Bank security teams may want to be sure to take a listen when Jack talks at Black Hat. Claiming due diligence in the face of these new security threats might be tough if thieves are able to pick up on Jack’s tricks.

For more on the conference and its presenters, visit here.

Tags: ATM, Barnaby Jack, Black Hat, researcher, security