ATM WINDOWS XP SOFTWARE UPGRADE: NIGERIAN BANKS REQUIRES N7.4BN

Deposit Money Banks in Nigeria will require a minimum of N7.35billion to completely overall the current fleet of over 10,500 ATMs running on the windows XP software in Nigeria.
The danger far out weights the continued use Windows XP on over 10, 500 ATM machines in Nigeria with dramatic increase in card transaction frauds across the globe and the loss of billions of naira in recent times by deposit money banks in Nigeria, prompted some of the lenders to prevent their payments cards from working in the United States of America, China and a few other countries.

If Nigerian banks fail to upgrade their ATMs to a newer version of Windows after the April 8, 2014 which has already passed, customers may be at risk. If hackers discover new flaws in Windows XP, those bugs will go unaddressed, leaving attackers free to exploit them.
It is not yet clear what hackers achieve with a Windows XP ATM after April 8. But the prospect of providing a potentially compromised machine with your account and PIN information is unsettling. Especially in the light of various hacking report across the globe especially on Sony, Security agencies website among others.
The investment in upgrading these ATMs might be a drop in the ocean of financial fraud perpetrated through security flaws on existing windows XP application being used by most banks in Nigeria.
ATM security experts have provided interim solutions to guarantee the integrity of these machines while various financial institutions decide on upgrade strategy without compromising the financial integrity of customers’ deposits.
Nigerian banks could develop special deals with Microsoft to extend life support for their Windows XP machines while they replace their fleet of ATMs. This was adopted by JPMorgan (JPM), with a deal of a one-year extension of service and plans to start upgrading ATMs to Windows 7 at Chase banks.
Replacing the current operating systems on ATMs is a major undertaking. In Nigeria, there are about 15,000 bank ATMs, with over 10,500 of which reportedly run on Windows XP, according to report by The Punch newspaper. In most cases, banks must upgrade the software one ATM at a time, and some will need the entire computer inside replaced too. Labour included, it's a process that experts in the ATM industry say could cost anywhere between N200, 000 and N700, 000 apiece depending on the extent of upgrade requirement.
At this rate, Nigerian Deposit Banks will require a minimum of N7.35billion to completely overall the current fleet of over 10,500 ATMs running on the windows XP software in Nigeria.