The research explores the impact of so-called ‘Art Mats’ on the behaviours of cashpoint users.
ATMs have been in use on the streets of the world for over 40 years and their design has evolved to ensure that they work safely and to the convenience and benefit of users. The design challenge is a balancing act between customer security and customer service. On the security side a considerable amount of design activity has been focused on developing original encryption software to ensure transactions can be verified and ensuring machines are invulnerable to physical attack from criminals. On the customer service side designs have included adaptations to protect us from ourselves – for example, our cards are returned to us before our money is presented.
Despite these precautions adaptive criminals continue to challenge the ingenuity of service providers and their designers, in an innovative ‘arms race’ of move and counter move.
Between 2008 and 2011, the most common ATM crime perpetrator techniques recorded by Police in City of Westminster were ‘distraction theft’ (between 63% and 77% of recorded ATM crime) followed by ‘skimmer/reader’ or ‘trapping’ offences (between 4% and 11% - as indicated by the fact that cash was deducted from the victims account at a later date).
Much has been done to address ATM crime from the perspective of technological intervention in response to ‘machine-centred’ MOs (including the fitting of devices to incapacitate card ‘skimmers’ and trapping devices and to shield ATM users’ PINs.
Less attention has been paid to how the behaviours of ATM users may reduce or promote opportunities for ATM crime linked to ‘human-centred’ MOs such as ‘shoulder surfing’ and ‘distraction theft’ of what Oscar Newman calls ‘defensible space’ around the hole in the wall. The creation of these defensible spaces has typically been limited to the introduction of painted squares and messages that define ATM ‘security zones’ or ‘privacy areas’.
Whilst these zones have been reported to be effective in reducing crime in the vicinity of ATMs they have not proven popular with some businesses and members of the public who consider them to be indicative of crime problems and therefore a deterrent to users and unattractive.
The Design Against Crime Research Centre, working with Hammersmith Police, trialled the introduction of artworks instead of warning messages at RBS cash machines in 2010. Anecdotal evidence suggested that the ATM Art mats were effective in creating defensible space and well liked by businesses and the public.
Following the apparent success of the Hammersmith trial RBS Group stepped up as the pioneering partners of the ATM Art mat project. As part of a multi-channel approach to ATM security, which includes address to technology, environment and behaviour, RBS ATM Fraud Control commissioned a control trial of the ATM Art which tested whether the introduction of ATM Art mats at cash machines would create a defensible space that would deter queuing users, and passing pedestrians, from moving close to users and thus reduce opportunities for ‘shoulder surfing’ and ‘distraction theft’. Specifically, the programme tested the hypotheses that:
I. ATM use does not decrease in locations where Art is deployed.
II. Perceptions of security, feelings of safety and appreciation of aesthetics of the streetscape increase among ATM users and other street users in locations where ATM Art is deployed.
III. Incidence of behaviours that are considered to defend against ATM crime increase amongst ATM users and other street users in locations where ATM Art is deployed e.g. queuing behaviours that grant privacy and space to ATM users.
IV. Incidence of ATM crime decreases in locations where ATM Art is deployed relative to similar sites with no ATM Art or other pavement markings.
A concerning finding of the survey research was that more than 90% of ATM users had at some stage felt the need to ask other users of the streetscape to grant them more privacy when using an ATM. Of these, less than half felt able to do so. This suggests that in addition to the subconscious behavioural changes afforded by the introduction of the artworks, conscious changes may need to be supported in other ways, linked to changing cultural understandings and values.
ATM Art mat research raises questions about how the physical and cultural “context of use” may be as influential as design itself in the fight against street crime. It demonstrates that astute multi-agency partnerships are necessary to effectively achieve crime prevention, and that address to cultural values (conscious behaviours) need to be addressed, alongside subconscious behaviours, afforded by ‘nudges’ delivered by physical design changes.
Whilst ATM Art mat may appear “magic” in their subconscious instruction they reinforce the understanding that there are no “magic bullets” in crime prevention. Multi-agency and multi-channel approaches are required to be successful in preventing crime.
