automated teller machine
Enable an AI agent to recognise an automated teller machine, assess its ability to provide authorised self-service financial transactions, and determine which customer or maintenance actions are currently permitted.
Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled
6 bundles · 11 layers · 18 findings · 28 questions
Terminal role and configuration Establishes which ATM is being observed and which financial services its installed configuration supports.
Terminal identity and responsibility
Connects the physical terminal to its installation and accountable service organisations.
Identified ATM installation
Record the terminal identifier, physical location and evidence identifying its operator and service contacts.
- Which identifier and installation details distinguish this ATM from another terminal at the same site? definition
- What operator record or terminal notice establishes who handles customer incidents and machine servicing? provenance
Installed financial services
Separates supported operations from branding, assumptions and temporary availability.
Configured transaction set
Record the operations enabled for this terminal and any documented customer or network eligibility constraints.
- Which withdrawal, deposit, enquiry or transfer operations are explicitly supported by this terminal? definition
- Which restrictions originate in the terminal configuration, and which belong to the account provider or transaction network? boundary
Customer access and authorisation Describes how a customer reaches, initiates and controls an ATM session.
Session initiation
Captures supported initiation methods and their documented prerequisites without storing authentication secrets.
Supported authentication paths
Record accepted initiation media and the public steps required to establish an authorised session.
- Which card, contactless or cardless initiation paths are enabled, and what prerequisites does each have? definition
- How can a customer cancel or end each supported session path, and what confirms that the session has ended? action
Usable customer interface
Captures physical access and the interface features needed to complete a transaction.
Accessibility and privacy conditions
Record site access restrictions, reachable controls, supported languages and documented visual, tactile or audio assistance.
- What observed access conditions and documented interface features affect this customer's ability to use the ATM? measurement
- Which assistance or alternative-terminal action is appropriate when the customer cannot independently operate a required control? action
Cash and media handling Describes the terminal's cash paths, transaction constraints and handling of customer media.
Cash transaction feasibility
Relates requested cash operations to currency, denomination, inventory and acceptance constraints.
Dispense and deposit constraints
Record the documented conditions under which the terminal can dispense or accept the requested cash or deposit items.
- Which currencies, denominations, item types and per-operation limits apply to each installed cash or deposit function? definition
- What authorised evidence indicates sufficient dispensable cash or remaining deposit capacity for the requested operation? measurement
Presented and retained media
Distinguishes cash and card handling events that require different customer or operator responses.
Media disposition
Record whether cash, cards or deposit items were presented, taken, returned, retracted, retained or left in an unresolved state, where observable.
- What evidence distinguishes cash presented from cash collected, and a returned card from a retained card? measurement
- Which documented customer-support or authorised recovery action applies to retained media or an unresolved deposit? action
Transaction state and service health Connects current service availability to dependencies and distinguishes terminal events from financial outcomes.
Operation-specific readiness
Records which installed services can run under current component and external-service conditions.
Readiness and blocking dependencies
Associate each unavailable or degraded operation with a reported component fault or dependency condition and the freshness of that evidence.
- Which transactions are currently available, and when was that status last confirmed? measurement
- Which documented dependencies or component faults block each affected operation? provenance
Transaction outcome evidence
Separates customer-visible results, physical cash events and externally confirmed account outcomes.
Interrupted or disputed transaction
Record non-sensitive incident references, observed transaction stage and unresolved outcome without inferring ledger state from terminal behaviour.
- What terminal message, receipt or permitted event record supports the reported outcome? provenance
- Which outcome requires confirmation from the account provider or operator before advising a retry or treating the incident as resolved? boundary
Security and authorised servicing Defines evidence and authority needed to suspend use, inspect the ATM or restore service.
Customer-facing security condition
Captures reported anomalies without claiming that visual inspection can certify the terminal as secure.
Suspected interface tampering
Record observed alterations or operator alerts affecting the card reader, keypad, cash outlet or other customer-facing components.
- What observation or operator alert supports the suspected tampering condition, and when was it recorded? provenance
- What operator-documented action should follow before further customer use? action
Service authority and return to use
Connects maintenance and cash-handling actions to authorised roles and restoration evidence.
Controlled service transition
Record the applicable service restriction, responsible authorised role and checks required before affected transactions resume.
- Which role is authorised to perform the required replenishment, retained-media recovery, inspection or repair? action
- What documented checks and operator confirmation establish that the affected services may return to customer use? provenance
Evidence and external alignment What the world already says about this thing, gathered so the model can be checked against it.
Reported evidence
Findings from the breadth pass, kept separate from the structural claims.
Kinds and varieties
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these kinds and varieties hold for the sense of automated teller machine this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Identifiers and schemes
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these identifiers and schemes hold for the sense of automated teller machine this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Standards and regulation
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these standards and regulation hold for the sense of automated teller machine this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Real-world use
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these real-world use hold for the sense of automated teller machine this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Typical measurements
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these typical measurements hold for the sense of automated teller machine this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Failure modes and hazards
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these failure modes and hazards hold for the sense of automated teller machine this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Regional variation
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these regional variation hold for the sense of automated teller machine this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- Which of these neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart hold for the sense of automated teller machine this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Classifiers Filled
- Family
- Thing Registry
- Category
- Physical world and living systems
- Entry kind
- thing
- Plane
- PHY
- Domain
- PHY.OBJ
- Other names and narrower kinds
- ATM Leaderboard, Cash Express, E-net ATM, Bitcoin ATM, cheque deposit machine, IBM 3624, cash deposit machine, white-label ATM
What it is Filled
A customer-operated, host-authorised cash terminal that authenticates a payment-card or account holder (typically chip-and-PIN or an equivalent credential) and dispenses banknotes from secured cassettes, and that may also accept deposits or offer other self-service account operations without a human teller.
In scope
- Terminal identity, installation, operator and servicing relationships
- Supported transactions and the conditions under which each is available
- Customer authentication, interaction and accessibility interfaces
- Cash dispensing, deposit acceptance and retained-media handling where installed
- Terminal faults, physical security indicators and maintenance restrictions
Out of scope
- Customer identities, account balances and banking entitlements
- Bank ledgers, payment-network settlement and interbank reconciliation
- Banknote design, issuance and legal-tender policy
- Building-wide access control and site security operations
- Operator-wide compliance programmes and cash logistics fleets
Why it exists Filled
Enable an AI agent to recognise an automated teller machine, assess its ability to provide authorised self-service financial transactions, and determine which customer or maintenance actions are currently permitted.
Distinguishing features Filled
- Provides a customer-operated banking transaction interface linked to an account or other authorised financial service, distinguishing it from a passive account-information display.
- Has a configured cash dispensing or cash deposit function associated with financial transactions, distinguishing it from an ordinary banking kiosk; the exact inclusion boundary requires confirmation.
- Operates as a dedicated self-service terminal rather than requiring a cashier to perform the transaction, distinguishing it from a teller counter or staffed cash register.
- Treats cash delivery or acceptance as a financial service rather than incidental change or cashback during a retail purchase, distinguishing it from a vending machine or point-of-sale terminal.
What robots and AI may and may not do Filled
Must not
- Ask for, read, store or relay anyone's PIN or card data.
- Help tamper with, skim, break into or bypass the security of a cash machine.
- Use a machine with a card or account the agent is not authorized to use.
- Hide or downplay signs of tampering on a machine.
Only with a human decision
- Withdrawing cash for a person, even with their stated consent.
- Taking a machine out of service after suspected tampering.
May
- Report an ATM's location, status, faults and cash level to its operator.
- Help a cardholder find a working machine and understand its fees.
Moral aspects Filled
- ATMs give access to people's money; trust in them depends on security and privacy.
- Closure of machines can cut cash access for older and rural people.
Who is affected
- Cardholders
- Older people relying on cash
- Bank and site staff
Owners Filled
Steward
The operator, usually a bank or deployer; the site owner hosts it.
Master systems
- Payment network terminal registers
Links to other meta-models Filled
parent
- Q2267569 - registry parent class
- Q4826443 - registry parent class
What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled
Identity and identifiers required Filled
- Vercy registry: vr.tr.automated-teller-machine
- Wikidata: Q81235 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q81235)
Direct properties required Filled
- Terminal identity: Operator-assigned terminal identifier; manufacturer, model and serial number when available
- Responsible organisations: Owner, operator, acquiring institution, cash replenisher and maintenance provider, with roles distinguished
- Transaction capabilities: Configured operations such as withdrawal, balance enquiry, transfer, cash deposit or cheque deposit; unsupported and unknown recorded explicitly
- Transaction availability: Per operation: available, degraded, unavailable or unknown, with observation time and reason
- Customer initiation methods: Supported card, contactless, mobile-token or other operator-documented methods
- Cash configuration: Accepted and dispensed currencies and denominations; dispenser, deposit-only or recycling cash paths where documented
- Cash availability and acceptance headroom: Authorised counts by currency and denomination, or operator-reported availability bands; deposit capacity in documented units
- Configured transaction limits: Currency amount, note count or item count per operation, with the responsible rule source
- Customer access conditions: Accessible now, access restricted, physically obstructed or unknown; applicable opening hours and interface limitations
- Security and service state: Operator-reported normal, inspection required, suspected tampering, maintenance isolation or unknown
Recognition required Filled
- A wall or free-standing unit with a card slot, PIN pad, screen and cash slot.
- Network acceptance marks and the operator's name on the fascia.
- Loose or bulky parts on the card slot or keypad suggest tampering.
Capabilities and actions required Filled
- Determine whether the terminal supports a requested transaction and compatible initiation method.
- Guide a customer through documented public controls without collecting a PIN, authentication token or full card details.
- Assess whether a cash request is feasible using permitted denomination, availability and limit information.
- Report failed cash delivery, retained media or suspected tampering to the responsible operator using non-sensitive references.
- Recommend an alternative terminal when the required service or accessible interface is unavailable.
- Identify the authorised replenishment, inspection or repair action associated with a reported terminal condition.
Hazards and failure modes required Filled
- Skimming devices and hidden cameras steal card data and PINs.
- Physical attacks on machines endanger people nearby.
- Card or cash retained by a faulty machine.
Standards and interfaces required Filled
- PCI PIN Security Requirements, PCI Security Standards Council.
- EMV Integrated Circuit Card Specifications for Payment Systems, EMVCo.
Context of use required Filled
- Automated teller machines provide self-service access to cash and account services in bank branches, shops, transport hubs and other public locations.
- Customers use authenticated account access to request withdrawals, balance information and any supported deposit or transfer services.
- Operators use secured service access for cash replenishment, fault assessment and maintenance.
Sources Filled
- Automated teller machine - Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation - Common name, history, typical functions, and everyday varieties (lobby, through-the-wall, drive-up).
- ISO 8583, Financial transaction card originated messages - Interchange message specifications - International Organization for Standardization - The card-originated authorisation and financial-message format used by ATM hosts and payment networks.
- ISO 9564, Financial services - Personal Identification Number (PIN) management and security - International Organization for Standardization - PIN entry, protection and verification requirements that ATM PIN pads implement.
- EMV Integrated Circuit Card Specifications for Payment Systems - EMVCo - Chip-card authentication used by modern ATMs for cardholder verification and transaction cryptograms.
- PIN Transaction Security (PTS) Point of Interaction (POI) Modular Security Requirements - PCI Security Standards Council - Security evaluation and approval of ATM PIN-entry and encrypting PIN-pad modules.
- UL 291, Standard for Automated Teller Systems - UL - Physical construction and attack-resistance requirements for ATM assemblies in North American practice.
- EN 1143-1, Secure storage units - Requirements, classification and methods of test for resistance to burglary - Safes, ATM safes, strongroom doors and strongrooms - CEN - Burglary-resistance grades applied to ATM safes in European specification and procurement.
- 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design - U.S. Department of Justice - Reach, privacy, input and output requirements for ATMs treated as accessible public facilities in the United States.
- Wikidata item Q81235: automated teller machine - identity and sense of the item
- Wikipedia: ATM - general description of the item
Open questions
- Does the registry's intended ATM boundary include deposit-only terminals, teller-assisted machines and cryptocurrency cash kiosks, or are those neighbouring kinds?
- Which existing Vercy models already own terminal software, payment-network participation, accessibility requirements or cash-handling components?
- Which operator and manufacturer sources can establish configuration, event meanings and recovery procedures for a particular ATM?
- What inventory, diagnostic and incident information may each agent role access, and what freshness is sufficient for transaction or service decisions?
- Which jurisdictional and operator requirements govern accessibility, fee disclosure, retained media and disputed cash transactions for the installation being modelled?
Machine files
Provenance
thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed
Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q81235/spec.json