Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy has called crisis talks with the State's biggest security companies following the robbery yesterday of €1.3 million from a cash-in-transit van in Carlow.
A Securicor employee and his wife, both in their 60s, were tied up, gagged and held at separate locations in Dublin overnight by the armed gang.
The Irish Bank Officials' Association said employees with access to large sums of money were now viewed as soft targets by criminal gangs. It called on staff to "think carefully" before agreeing to become key holders.
In the latest attack at least four raiders armed with handguns arrived at the home of Bernard and Ailish Hogan at Hillcrest Close, Lucan, Co Dublin just after 7pm on Sunday.
Mrs Hogan was taken to a disused property off the Naas Road near Rathcoole where she was held overnight. Mr Hogan was held in the family home until yesterday morning when he was ordered to call in sick for work at Securicor.
He was made travel with some of the raiders in his own car to Carlow town where a Securicor van was due to load an ATM machine at a Maxol garage on O'Brien Road at about 10.30am.
He told the crew of the security van that the money they were carrying had to be given to a gang holding his wife. He brought the cash to the nearby disused Lapple factory where the gang took possession of the money and drove off.
Gardaí found Mrs Hogan at about 11.30am. The couple were said to be "deeply traumatised".
Senior Garda sources said the gang was clearly operating on specific high-quality information about Mr Hogan and the movement of the money.
They believe such information is being leaked from inside the security industry to armed crime gangs who have carried out a series of recent kidnap/hostage-taking robberies. Gardaí and Government officials also believe security procedures in the sector are not being followed as closely as they should.
Mr Conroy has called a meeting of the security industry forum where he will outline his concerns to senior managers in the companies involved.
Securicor confirmed the robbery had taken place but declined to comment further.