BANK tech-trends News
 

January 4, 2010 - January 8, 2010

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

Hardware News

Some observers argue that the days of the BIOS are numbered. They point out that the Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) will introduce a more powerful solution able to better cope with the demands of today’s diverse hardware. In a nutshell, UEFI is an interface that takes care of handing over the pre-boot environment to the operating system. A BIOS relies on the x86 architecture’s 16-bit real mode, but UEFI introduces full hardware independence and interfaces split into boot and runtime services. Unfortunately, industry support for UEFI is still weak, and the standard has some shortcomings, but look for UEFI to gradually replace the conventional BIOS and offer new interfaces to operating systems, facilitating boot-up and introducing a lot of flexibility through UEFI applications and OS-independent device drivers.

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ATMs/Kiosks

Robert Siciliano, an identity theft protection expert at Intelius, has created a stir in the ATM industry by buying a used ATM on Craig's list that he was able to extract card info from with little effort. He was able to print out transaction journal entries, revealing full account numbers for cards used at the ATM before he purchased it. This was an older machine that did not have the PANs (personal account numbers) masked. Yet some criticized Sicilano, stating that the 16-digit account numbers would do him no good without the Track 2 information from the card, the name and expiration date; and in order to create a fake card and withdraw cash, he would have to have a PIN. Siciliano contends that people should not be able to sell an ATM on Craig’s list or eBay. Meanwhile, the ATM Industry Association says that they do not condone the auctioning of ATMs, online or otherwise., however they point out that this kind of control would have to be mandated legislatively.

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GSMA, EMVCo and GlobalPlatform are working together to develop a cross-industry NFC certification process. The three associations will design a model which will allow certification processes to be put in place to ensure that any NFC payments application will work on any platform. "When fully developed and operational, these schemes will work together to ensure that any certified payment application will work with any certified UICC [SIM] platform, reducing the incidence of certification failures when new application/platform combinations are subsequently added for testing," say the associations.

Mobile devices such as the Blackberry and iPhone are leading the way for mobile banking; in fact, over 55% of all mobile banking coming from smart phones according to research from the Yankee Group. Today consumers are increasingly using mobile banking beyond ATM locator and balance transfer - many users are expediting bill payments and domestic remittances. Blackberry users are especially dependent on their devices, especially for business related e-mail and text messaging. That is why some observers believe that the two major Blackberry outages in less than one week last month are quite troublesome for Research In Motion. One analyst commented that “one of RIM’s big advantages is that it’s perceived as a reliable device…To lose the advantage of reliability would, in fact, be a very big deal for this company.

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Data masking is an approach to data security used to conceal sensitive information, most commonly in relational databases. Unlike encryption, which renders data unusable until it is restored to clear text, masking is designed to protect data while retaining business functionality. The two most common business use cases for masking are testing and analytics. Masking provides test applications and business analytics with valuable data and simultaneously secures sensitive information.

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Core Systems:

Helping Banks Focus on Opportunities

Fidelity Information Services - http://www.fidelityinfoservices.com   Read Anthony Jabbour's comments:   http://www.banktt.com/roundtable/FIS.pdf

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

Fiserv - http://www.opensolutions.com Read David Mitchell's comments: http://www.banktt.com/roundtable/OSI.pdf

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Many analysts believe that the number of products offered to customers should be reduced. They argue that as product selection grows, it becomes harder for customers to understand the differences between accounts and their pricing, and harder for your front line employees to explain their unique benefits. Peak Performance Consulting Group believes just the opposite. They contend that With more options, there is an increased tendency is justify the choice of a better product, even if it costs more. They say that "selective complexity" can serve to create greater justification to buy the services that are perceived as needed, even if they are not the least cost. Case in point: one institution has gone so far as to offer "Free Checking", which can be customized with the addition of up to seven additional fee based services.

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The hijacking of online banking accounts has become so prevalent among small and midsize businesses that experts are calling for account holders to take immediate precautions. These security conscious people recommend that small businesses conduct online banking activity only from a stand-alone PC that is never used for e-mail or Web browsing. As an alternative to dedicating a single-use PC, small businesses could also use only a locked-down browser from Authentium, or the Ubuntu open-source browser, launched from a CD or USB memory stick.

We recently reported that checks will come to an end in the UK in 2018. In the US, several large grocery chains are piloting a "no checks policy," including Whole Foods at select stores. Another chain, Fresh & Easy, declared it would simply stop accepting checks altogether. Some observers are predicting that if not within five years, certainly within ten, paper checks will be phased out across America.

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Multiprotocol Label Switching has been one of the most successful technologies of the past decade, and the advantages of MPLS are many: in addition to protocol neutrality, MPLS is highly scalable and can intelligently route time-sensitive voice and video packets through low-latency routes throughout the network. Of course, MPLS is evolving and MPLS Transport Profile (MPLS-TP), will be the next most immediate version of the technology to hit the market. MPLS-TP is basically the same as MPLS but with key new features such as the ability to take advantage of Quality of Service and fast reroute. It brings the benefit of packet switching to optical and transport networks and can run over any physical layer, from Ethernet to SONET/SDH to OTN.

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There is no the "industry standard" in call centers regarding performance reviews, but some centers have two performance reviews a year: a mid-year and end-of-year review. At the beginning of the year, objectives and goals based on the organization's overall business plan are set for each individual, along with personal objectives, such as cross-training, improving availability, improving attendance, etc. At the mid-year mark, the review focuses on where the agent is in meeting their objectives, and there is an opportunity to adjust/change/eliminate goals based on business need. Finally, the end of year performance review takes into consideration the half year review, as well as performance over the last 6 months of the year.

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