People not only want to do their banking at home, but also when they’re out and about. Yet, until fairly recently, many banks couldn't meet this demand. Not because they didn’t want to grant their customers mobile access, but because security is such a big worry.
It’s not just a question of granting safe access to mobile applications, but of ensuring that streams of data can’t be intercepted.
Quite simply, providing external access is a perennial problem.
But now, many financial institutions are conceding in the face of enormous customer pressure. Not only does this boost customer satisfaction; transferring some tasks to customers enables banks to make internal savings. Application security technology (AST) is the goal as banks strive to ensure that apps are safe in an unsecure environment. Developers are answering that call: Kobil, for instance, provides a number of systems that all address AST.
One problem to which phones and tablets are susceptible is "app-jacking," in which attackers install an identical banking app on a mobile device. Although customers believe the transaction has proceeded normally, they’ve in fact transmitted their access codes and PINs straight to a hacker. AST prevents this from happening via a complex system of security certificates and other safety measures.
Apart from security, banks must deliver high-quality customer service. Consequently, Allianz is now providing customers with a special app for use on both Android and iOS devices. It allows customers to carry out a number of banking operations such as obtaining their balance, performing credit transfers, and creating and amending standing orders. It even shows them where the nearest ATM is, complete with directions on how to get there. Accordingly, customers can get ahold of cash wherever they happen to be, and pay bills when they’re on holiday abroad.
Swiss provider Add-Direct has gone the extra mile by placing the bank online -- or at least parts of one. By logging on to Eny Finance, customers can borrow money on demand, and even go through the whole process online -- from submitting the application to receiving the money. The same also goes for insurance products.
One key factor is that all the options are available in mobile form; for example, clients can request loans using an app. What’s more, this platform enables providers to lower service charges without cutting back on support.
Banking apps don’t just help customers. Banks can also put them to profitable use. Last year, Credit Suisse developed an app for client advisers
Even though banks have finally taken the first steps towards mobile banking, there’s still plenty of scope for innovation. And the bottom line is that they’ll need to provide app-based services if they want to attract new customers and keep the ones they've already got.
— Charlotte Erdmann comments on a wide range of technologies from her base in Berlin. In addition to blogging, she is a media and communication consultant, organizing and managing large customer magazines and marketing activities within the IT industry.
The funny thing is, if you get the security questions wrong, they'll usually keep asking until you get one right.
@Kim, I agree with you. I think they should limit the security questions so that the probability of a person guessing the answer is reduced. It should lock the account if the user fails to answer 1-2 security questions.
is that they simply end up providing another avenue for hackers. A couple of years ago, I'd just arrived at my boyfriend's house in Connecticut when I got a call from my bank, supposedly, about fraudulent activity on my account. Well, I was tired, and I forget what it was they were asking, but it occurred to me after I hung up that, duh, and I called the bank and had everything cancelled.
So it stands to reason that if we set up something to alert us, we'll start getting odd messages about "We think your account has been compromised -- please type in <magic thing> to prove you're you" -- and then they'll have <magic thing>.
The funny thing is, if you get the security questions wrong, they'll usually keep asking until you get one right. It's more the appearance of security than anything else.
Layering is the answer, I suppose, but that alienates customers -- who want to use only one security measure. It really is a problem for all organizations that HAVE to safeguard information (and assets), yet must simultaneously cater to customers' wishes. I know there's an answer out there; we're certainly not there yet!
Banks are spending a lot of money and time on exploring new security technologies, such as various forms of biometrics.
@Alison, I am not sure if biometrics is totally secure and reliable. For instance iris recognition systems can be compromised by aging irides and finger scanning systems by worn-out or cut fingerprints.
Yep, when amusement parks have figured out how to use fingerprints and RFID in order to avoid getting ripped off but we still have to recall our last six addresses in order to move money from one account to another, it's a pretty odd world!
Yep, making stuff customer friendly but yet secure is the trick that has to be solved. I'm still irritated when my bank has me go through several steps to get to my info. I know it still necessary to protect my accounts, but I still don't like it much. There has to be an easier way.
I was once charged for purchasing a car on the other side of the country. I got the money back. On the other hand, my card was frozen because I used an ATM about two blocks from my home. Plain sailing it isn't.
Banks are spending a lot of money and time on exploring new security technologies, such as various forms of biometrics. The trick is these solutions not only have to be extremely secure; they must also be simple to use and require little -- ideally no -- training.
One of the security options- that one Russian bank uses- is to confirm your actions with sms- if you are buying something and paying more than $100- you need to input a code that you get with sms- I think it's pretty convinient and safe- noone can steal more than $100.
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Early last month, the Rhineland-Palatinate regional government opened up its data to the public. During CeBIT, it launched the Open Government Data Portal Rhineland-Palatinate (OGDP-RP), which will provide centralized access to administrative data from regional agencies and local authorities. But for what purpose exactly?
Regardless of whether we're doing online banking, researching new markets, working in the cloud, or simply surfing, we're at risk of becoming a victim of hackers. IT departments take extensive steps to protect data, networks, and devices, but in an era of BYOD and increasingly sophisticated cybercriminals, employees also have to safeguard themselves.
A few months ago, my phone rang unusually late. Somebody at a company for which I had access to the intranet told me, with panic in his voice, that there'd been a hacker attack. It was difficult to see how much damage had been done, he told me, and so IT had decided to take the entire internal network offline.
During the world’s biggest entertainment trade show, the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this year, pundits agreed that cloud gaming was the future. In fact, it could overtake traditional gaming by 2020.
A recent release of the popular TweetDeck app for Twitter power-users gives new life to software that had previously taken a wrong turn. Here's a quick walk-through of the new TweetDeck, to show you why it should be at the top of your Twitter toolkit.
More companies are trolling social networks to find and vet potential job candidates. Beware the pitfalls of blurring the line between personal and professional lives.
A survey by JD Powers found that customer interest in product features is lessening as phones evolve. Rather than features, price is driving purchases, and that change could have a dramatic impact on how IT departments secure these devices.
"Social Enterprise" is an increasingly trendy term, and Salesforce.com has been leading the way. At its Dreamforce conference last week, the theme was clear: From here on, enterprise applications must have social capabilities built in.
The sooner purveyors of cloud computing services can pass muster, security-wise, with financial services companies, the sooner cloud computing will really go mainstream.
New tools like laptops, tablets, smartphone, and wireless connectivity let us work from San Diego to Katmandu, and anywhere in between. But time management remains a problem.
New York's Metropolitan Transit Authority is conducting a pilot test of digital kiosks to guide subway users to where they want to go more efficiently and at lower cost.
The whole Amazon.reader debate is a double-stupid. It's stupid to think that there's any e-book buyer who doesn't know Amazon's URL, and it was stupider to let ICANN launch the whole free-form TLD initiative to start with.
While NFC's original goal was to enhance mobile commerce applications, it is finding its way into a number of other uses, which is creating both opportunity as well as challenges for IT departments.
Enterprises would like to move to cloud computing but are hesitant because they are concerned about providers’ ability to secure company data. Here are some tips that help to ensure that if breaches occur, the business is not left holding the bag.
Edmunds separates customers into segments based on the info it collects on its site and from partners, and uses that to push out custom content, said Brian Baron, director of business analytics for Edmunds.com, at Predictive Analytics Innovation Summit.
The automotive website uses propensity modeling to target ads and customer registration forms, said Brian Baron, director of business analytics for Edmunds.com, at Predictive Analytics Innovation Summit.
Subsidized handsets, rather than locked handsets, should be the focus of regulators. We're not getting good deals, not fostering innovation, and weakening our power as buyers.
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