The Interior Ministry decided to close the lobbies of bank branches at night in Germany because of the increasing number of break-ins at ATMs, Bloomberg reported.

According to the head of the ministry Nancy Faeser, the authorities have to take such measures, as the number of attacks on ATMs with explosives has more than doubled over the past two years. The negative statistics was recently confirmed by Europol: the number of assaults on ATMs is increasing not only in Germany but in other European countries as well.

Now German citizens will not have access to ATMs from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. for their own safety. In the near future, the government plans to improve video surveillance, deal with the protection of equipment and reduce the amount of cash held at an ATM.