BANK tech-trends News
 

June 1, 2009 - June 5, 2009

• 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

Solid state disks (SSDs) are now appearing within every vendor's equipment portfolio. An SSD's capital cost (or price per GB) is currently holding it back from replacing hard disk drives (HDDs). At a recent storage conference one expert said: "The price per GB cross-over point could be 2013 but the IOPS [input-output per second] cross-over is now." Meanwhile HDD spin speeds and capacities are hitting a wall. The highest performance HDDs have stayed at 15,000 rpm for some time; at 20,000 rpm, the outer edge is travelling faster than the speed of sound.

Asustek Computer joined other NAS (network attached storage) device makers such as QNAP and Acer by showing off a new NAS that uses Intel's low-power, inexpensive Atom N270 microprocessor. The device provides data storage and backup for small businesses and contains two 7200 rpm SATA hard disk drives offering a total of 1TB of storage. The storage device is designed for continuous operation, carries an uninterrupted power supply (UPS), and can act as a communication hub for wireless devices connected to a wired local network.

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ATMs/Kiosks

Triton announced that its parent company, Dover, and Nautilus Hyosung have terminated an acquisition agreement for Triton. It appears that the $64M deal was nixed by challenges that were coming from the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the anti-trust review process. Triton said it is going to continue to move ahead as a stand-alone ATM manufacturer.

NCR is touting their 2ST technology as a green addition to their SelfServ ATMs. 2ST is patented NCR technology that enables ATM deployers to print on both sides of a thermal paper receipt, reducing paper consumption by as much as 45 percent. The combined dual-roll, two-sided thermal printing modules include auto-change functionality to reduce paper waste and maintenance costs through fewer replenishment visits. In addition to 2ST printing, NCR SelfServ ATMs are equipped with other environmentally responsible features, including new energy-saving options such as LED lighting and a 25-percent reduction in the physical cabling over previous-generation ATMs to reduce power waste.

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In an effort to reduce labor costs and increase security, some banks are turning to Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies’ standalone Schlage biometric HandKey reader to provide its customers with self-service access to the safe deposit vault. Customers use a biometric hand geometry reader that simultaneously analyzes more than 31,000 points and records more than 90 separate measurements of an individual's hand, including length, width, thickness and surface area, to verify the person’s identification. Once a match is made, a bullet-proof glass door lets them in and the customer’s safe deposit box opens and nobody can enter the vault until that customer puts away their deposit box.

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New research from TowerGroup finds that 2009 will be a pivotal year for mobile banking as it turns from a niche channel to a mainstream channel. Despite the general downturn in the banking industry, TowerGroup estimates that mobile banking usage will grow from 10 million active users in 2009 to over 53 million active users in 2013, representing a compound annual growth rate of 52%. Driving forces include economic concerns that are prompting consumers to manage their finances more closely and the proliferation of mobile devices and smart phones. These trends lead the TowerGroup to believe that mobility will be a major disruptive force in the financial services industry.

Meanwhile Gartner is predicting a surge in mobile payments this year. The number of people around the world making payments using their mobile phones is set to soar from 43.1 million in 2008 to 73.4 million this year, a 70% rise, according to the analyst house. By 2012, the company predicts the number of people making m-payments will hit 190 million - more than three per cent of total mobile users - as it becomes "mainstream."

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According to McAfee’s recently released report "The Web’s Most Dangerous Search Terms," the most dangerous keyword to search for using public search engines these days is "screensavers." Upon searching for 2,658 unique popular keywords and phrases across 413,368 unique URLs, McAfee’s research concludes that lyrics and anything that includes ‘free” has the highest risk percentage of exposing users to malware and fraudulent websites. On the other hand, their research states that the category with the safest risk profile is health-related search terms.

New research from the Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG) has found that most phishers are setting up shop on legitimate websites to be inconspicuous in their attempts to pilfer valuable information from consumers. Among 30,454 phishing domains, only 5,991 domain names (18.5%) were registered by phishers. "Phishing most often takes place on compromised Web servers, where the phishers place their phishing pages unbeknownst to the site operators,"" says APWG. They add that "this method gains the phishers free hosting, and complicates take-down efforts because suspending a domain name or hosting account also disables the resolution of the legitimate user's site. Phishing on a compromised website typically takes place on a subdomain or in a subdirectory, where the phish is not easily noticed by the site's operator or visitors."

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Online & Mobile Banking:

Saving Costs and Increasing Marketshare

eEminder - http://www.eeminder.com   Read Thomas Utsch's comments:   http://www.banktt.com/roundtable/eEminder.pdf

Fiserv - http://www.fiserv.com Read Dave Selina's comments: http://www.banktt.com/roundtable/Fiserv_Selina.pdf

Fiserv - http://www.fiserv.com Read Steve Shaw's comments: http://www.banktt.com/roundtable/Fiserv_Shaw.pdf

Harland Financial Solutions - http://www.harlandfinancialsolutions.com   Read Jeff Marshall's comments:   http://www.banktt.com/roundtable/HFS.pdf

Syphr - http://www.syphronline.com Read Chris Langeley's comments: http://www.banktt.com/roundtable/Syphr.pdf

TowerGroup - http://www.towergroup.com Read Charul Vyas' comments: http://www.banktt.com/roundtable/TowerGroup.pdf

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S1 Enterprise has released the results on their latest survey entitled "Banking Relationships: An Era of Change." Historically, consumers have selected ‘Convenience’ as their top reason for choosing a financial institution. The new survey found that for U.S. consumers, this perennial ‘number one’ has been pushed to third place behind ‘Financial Stability’ (65 percent) and ‘Trust’ (54 percent) and only a few percentage points higher than ‘Customer Focused’ (47 percent). The researchers concluded that "this data underscores the need for financial institutions to draw closer to their customers in terms of communicating the institution’s financial health as well as demonstrating an understanding of customer needs and expectations."

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A multipurpose Visa card that has the capabilities of a mag stripe card, contactless payment card and secure ID card all in one device is being tested in Minneapolis. The card contains the MicroPass 4006 platform consisting of two applications: the Visa payWave application, which allows for contactless payment at the point of sale, and the HID iCLASS application, which allows for contactless access to secure facilities.

According to the head of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, the Federal Reserve Banks should adapt the automated clearing house network to compete directly with private-sector networks for debit card processing. Thomas Hoenig emphasized that he isn’t proposing the Fed issue cards or run its own card network, but he said the U.S. national banking regulator could “add enhancements” to the ACH that would allow the nearly ubiquitous network “to become an alternative to running transactions over card networks.” The idea of expanding the ACH into the market for debit card transactions is sure to meet stiff resistance, but some observers believe that the ACH network represents the most efficient debit network option available today.

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Verizon Business is rolling out new service packages, dubbed ‘Bizpacks’, that bring together the company’s wired and wireless voice and data capabilities with security and data management. The VoIP Bizpack puts together Voice over Internet Protocol solutions such as dedicated access, toll free and email management services with the company’s hardware offerings. This Bizpack is also offered with the Verizon IP Integrated Access, a site-based solution for medium sized customers for meeting their voice and data requirements through a single system while persisting with their existing phone system. For those customers who want low maintenance costs and capital outlay, and those who require an IP-based PBX system, Verizon offers a Hosted IP Centrex which is a total turnkey solution.

The most popular FTP replacement on the Web, YouSendIt, has been around since 2004 and has 8.5 million unique registered users. Individuals can use the service for free by providing their name and e-mail address, the e-mail address of the file recipient, and then uploading the file. The recipient gets an e-mail from YouSendIt with a unique download link for the file. Paid services include files larger than 100MB, password protected download links, certified delivery with tracking, and return receipts. Their Pro service is $9.99 per month, and their Business Plus service is $29.99 per month. You can also pay per use for features such as the certified delivery and tracking.

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Motivating long-time call center agents can be a difficult task for supervisors. Some call center managers suggest that one way to give your veterans a boost is to institute a mentor program. Having your new agents partner with someone who's been there and can empathize as well as guide them through the initiation process can be a good way to show an experienced agent that their experience and knowledge is valuable. Some programs that use mentors say that they go a long way to motivating agents - both the new one and the long time one. Also some programs strive to recognize mentors throughout their organization, not just in the call center which adds to the desire of employees to take part in the mentor program.

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