Bank tech-trends News
 

December 4 - December 8, 2006

• Hardware News
• Software Updates
• ATMs/Kiosks
• Biometric Digest Highlights
• Wireless World
• Security Section
• Leaders Roundtable
• Technology and Marketing
• Online Banking/E-Commerce/
  Website Design
• Internet Access
• Call Centers

Hardware News

If your bank is still using maintenance intensive dot-matrix printers to print checks and money orders, some analysts think that you need to strongly consider investing in MICR laser printers. They note that dot matrix printers with gradually fading toner produce poor quality print that becomes illegible when converted during the imaging process for electronic exchange. If the check images are rejected, then fees from receiving institutions may be issued for "non-compliant" checks. MICR laser printer proponents also point to security concerns with pre-printed check stock, and the costs associated with purchasing pre-printed forms, storing the physical inventory, and reordering out-dated stock.

More and more banks are looking to encrypt their tape backups. While encryption is not an end-all data security panacea, if one of your backup media goes AWOL, you will sleep better knowing that its contents are encrypted. We will cover some tape encrypting systems in the upcoming issue of BANK tech-trends - subscribe now.

Many data centers do not have a good handle on the amount of power they are using — even to what effect adding new IT equipment will have on their power loadings. Aperture Technologies is one company specializing in visualizing the physical layer in real time — including the server racks, cabling and power supply loadings. Aperture's latest VISTA500 software package is designed to help IT Departments manage their complex cooling and power issues.

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ATMs/Kiosks

Mid-tier ATM manufacturer Tranax and electronic-transaction-solution provider Hypercom have come out with a service called ATMConnect which upgrades dial-up ATMs to Internet Protocol (IP). Using Hypercom’s ATMConnect 5100, an Internet gateway that plugs directly into legacy ATMs, the solution converts dial-up messages to IP, securely encrypts all transactions, and works with either broadband or wireless connectivity. The firms recently demoed the ATMConnect service on a Tranax Mini-Bank c4000 ATM.

Looking to increase Brand Recognition and provide members with surcharge free ATMs?

Nationwide Money Services, Inc.’s Branded Cash Program is the answer. Fully endorsed by the VA Credit Union League and the CU 24 Network, our Branded Cash Program provides the ATM equipment, great locations, processing, maintenance, insurance, marketing rights and surcharge free transactions for your members, you only provide the cash and cash services for the ATM just as you would if you owned them. The ATMs look and act like your own, extending your reach or filling out your current market.

Our current CU partners include: AEDC, Beacon, Bronco, Carolina Collegiate, Educators, Freedom First, Food Lion Credit Association, Heritage Trust, Martinsville Dupont, NSWC, Old Hickory, Peoples Advantage, Southeast Financial and US Courthouse.

NMS also offers their ‘ATMs Made Easy’ Program for full service ATM management and placement services if you like the idea of having ATMs, but don’t want the hassle of day to day management and the associated costs for maintenance and unplanned expenses like triple DES.

For more information about the Branded Cash Program contact Bob Colabrese, EVP of Sales & Marketing at:

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At last month's BAI Retail Delivery show, Diebold showed their "Branch of the Future." It included biometric "welcome stations" where customers are identified when they walk in the door by a fingerprint reader or other biometric device of the bank's choosing. customers also indicate what transactions they wish to make at the welcome station. The system then analyzes their requests and customer profile against the current branch activity and workloads. The next step is for them to be directed to a "fulfillment station" which could be a customer service representative or an automated solution. Proponents say that the biometric identification at the beginning of the process will permit banks to be more effective in promoting new products and services on a one to one basis.

Every network administrator is concerned with Wi-Fi security, so a Utah-based company has come to their rescue with a biometric-based wireless security system. Learn more about it in the upcoming issue of BANK tech-trends - subscribe now.

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Some analysts are bullish on mobile banking in 2007. They predict that the roll out of mobile banking will be similar to online banking, which accelerated once a critical mass of consumers had home computers and broadband Internet access. They believe that the right forces are now coming together for the rise of mobile banking: major cellular carriers are upgrading their networks to deliver faster data speeds, mobile phones are getting faster processors and Web access, and Cingular Wireless (and perhaps other carriers) will be loading Firethorn Holdings' software that will allow Cingular customers to pay bills, check balances, and transfer funds on their cell phones.

A company called Intuition is targeting financial institutions with their "fully trackable mobile e-learning course for PDAs." They say that mobile learning via Personal Digital Assistants such as the BlackBerry represents the latest advance in 'anytime, anywhere' training. Mobile learning enables employees to make use of naturally occurring periods of 'down time' - such as the daily commute or business trips - for training purposes on new compliance issues and regulations.

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Symantec has launched its Security Awareness Center, a subscription-based online training program designed to help organizations deliver employee security awareness training via the Internet. The program is designed to help organizations create a more security-conscious workforce through educating and training employees on potential information security risks related to their behaviors. The center offers curriculum including narrative demonstrations, interactive games, and tests users on a number of different security topics including the following:

* Information Protection
* Password Security
* Malware Protection
* E-mail Security

Security vendor Secure Network Technologies uses social engineering techniques to test whether employees have become complacent in verifying credentials of the people who service an institution's needs. They are often able to successfully pose as a vendor (copier, telephone, computer, etc), enter the branch, plug into the network, sniff traffic, and obtain logins and passwords. They recommend that all employees be trained to place calls to confirm each and every visit from "technicians."

A company called IT GlobalSecure has introduced a "SuperPIN" which can be used for face-to-face, online, and telephone-based transactions. SuperPIN works by taking a regular PIN or password, divides it into several pieces, and shuffles in some other sets of random letters or numbers. The company claims that their patented SuperPIN technology delivers high levels of security at a fraction of the cost of smart cards and other high tech strategies. More info here: http://itglobalsecure.net/superpin/index.htm

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Stay Tuned for Upcoming Leaders Roundtables! 

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Of the more than 180 countries that issue paper currency, only the United States prints bills that are identical in size and color in all denominations. This practice may be coming to end though with the recent ruling from a US District Judge who has ruled that the US government discriminates against blind and visually-impaired people by keeping all denominations of paper dollar bills the same size and texture. The judge has ordered the government to develop ways to help blind and visually impaired people to tell bills apart. Some ideas include: printing notes of differing sizes, adding embossed dots or foil to the paper and using raised ink.

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Security guru Bruce Schneier believes that two-factor authentication is not going to reduce financial fraud or identity theft, and that all it will do is force the criminals to change their tactics, e.g., Man-in-the-Middle and Trojan attacks. His solution is not to better authenticate the person, but to authenticate the transaction. He is a big fan of back-end systems that monitor for suspicious behavior and automating out-of-band phone calls for risky online transactions.

According to a survey by Gartner, fear of fraud and identity theft have prevented around 33 million US adults from banking online. Nearly half of those surveyed (46%) said concerns about theft of information, data breaches or Internet-based attacks have affected their purchasing payment, online transaction or e-mail behavior. Of all the behaviors affected, online commerce - which includes Internet banking, online payments and Web shopping - is suffering the most. Almost nine million US adults have stopped using online banking, while another estimated 23.7 million won't even start because of fears over security.

Intuit will be looking to increase sales of their popular QuickBooks, TurboTax, and Quicken financial-software programs with their recent purchase of Digital Insight. Some analysts think that the deal will help drive remote deposit capture usage. Remote deposit capture allows merchants to scan checks and transmit the images electronically to their financial institutions instead of transporting paper for conventional depositing at the branch. One reason for this optimism is that San Francisco-based BankServ integrates a version of its DepositNow! online remote deposit capture service into QuickBooks. With Intuit's purchase of Digital Insight, BankServ could obtain access to thousands of businesses served through Digital Insight’s 1,700 financial-institution clients.

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Internet Access

According to a survey by AXS-One, 33% of respondents say their companies have no corporate policy covering electronic records management, and 20% don't even know whether they have a policy. This is especially troublesome now that under an amendment to the federal rules of civil procedure, organizations who are expecting to be sued will now have to preserve electronic data with the same care and diligence they would use in preserving documents. The rules codify how lawyers should handle electronic discovery, and mean that there can be no deleting e-mails when there is a likelihood of legal action.

You know high-speed Internet service is going mainstream when it is sold at Wal-Mart. AT&T has started promoting its high-speed Internet service in 570 Wal-Mart stores across the phone company's 13-state footprint. AT&T will give $25 and $75 "reward cards," good at any Wal-Mart, to people who sign up for its higher-priced, and faster, DSL products, which cost $19.99 to $34.99 per month. There is no reward card for people buying AT&T's cheapest, entry-level DSL service, which goes for $14.99 a month.

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Call Centers

Some high-tech contact centers are turning to "presence" technology to help them better serve their callers. Presence technology allows employees to convey their availability - and willingness - to communicate. One key part of presence is the ability to reach experts within your bank quickly and easily. We will cover how presence works in the upcoming issue of BANK tech-trends - subscribe now.

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