Small (less than 100 branches) and mid-sized (101-500 branches) retail banks are facing a tough economic outlook and increased competition as Internet banking and call centers become part of the cost of doing business. Info-Tech recommends leveraging Customer Relationship Management (CRM) applications to convert these cost centers into revenue generators that tap the bank’s most important asset, its clients. |
Cross Site Scripting (XSS) is a threat that is being leveraged against all business with an online presence. Given that this attack is being used increasingly for phishing purposes, and that financial institutions are the leading target of such attacks, banks should take the problem very seriously. Protecting the enterprise from this problem is a security must. |
As large numbers of people congregate online on social networks, new opportunities originate for financial services firms to engage their target audiences. Take the following current developments and recommendations into consideration and start taking advantage of social networks. |
To stay competitive in the market place and achieve higher levels of employee productivity, banks are turning to Web 2.0 technologies. While these technologies can be differentiators, implementing them creates risks. Financial institutions need to be aware of the threats associated with these technologies and take action to ensure proper protection. |
In today’s commoditized marketplace, small regional banks are experiencing the disappearance of market share in favor of competitors with flexible, open access core-banking platforms. IT executives seeking solutions to provide their customers convenient access are making tough decisions about retaining legacy core-banking systems. |
Conventional wisdom indicates that financial industries should keep e-mail services in-house. Buck conventional wisdom; county banks and securities trading firms with fewer than 200 employees, as well as other small financial industries firms, should outsource e-mail provisioning. |
SEC 17 does not mandate a specific approach to e-mail retention, but e-mail archiving solutions can provide a functional and cost effective solution to the mandates of SEC 17. Financial institutions that have not yet implemented e-mail archiving should move in that direction. |
While identity theft may be a fact of life in this increasingly online world, it is not one that financial institutions have to accept anymore. Becoming a member of the Secure Internet Banking Alliance (SIBA) and deploying Norton Confidential Online Edition (NCOE) will allow banks to offer a greater level of consumer protection than ever before. |
While financial institutions do not have to perform user activity monitoring to comply with the mandates of Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA), doing so will significantly simplify the process of passing an audit. Begin making use of inherent capabilities now and plan to add third-party tools where appropriate. |
As a result of the Federal Trade Commission's Safeguards Rule, financial institutions must make use of encryption as one of several mandatory technologies to achieve Gramm-Leach Bliley Act (GLBA) compliance. Implement the right encryption technologies to get the most bang for the buck. |
Small to mid-sized banks must look beyond their existing branch network for future growth. Online account opening capability is a critical component of capturing larger numbers of new customers in a cost effective manner. Integrate this functionality into existing systems without additional delay. |
Insurance companies that fail to apply location intelligence to their existing Geographic Information System (GIS) tools are exposing the enterprise to unacceptable levels of risk. Integrate location intelligence into existing underwriting and risk management activities to accelerate turnaround, avoid unnecessarily risky policies, and reduce decisioning-related overhead. |
ATMs and Web-based services have failed to kill the venerable bank branch. Brick and mortar remains a viable channel for delivery of complex services to high-value customers. In-branch kiosks allow institutions to shift branch-based delivery channels to higher-value products and services without increasing cost. |
The trends in the mortgage lending sector are clear: banks will increasingly need to reach out to brokers to maintain and grow their share of the mortgage business. POS solutions that add CRM-like capacity to existing loan processing systems will allow institutions to build stronger broker relationships and keep this side of the business growing. |
As a result of the FTC's Safeguards Rule, community banks must use Intrusion Detection and Prevention (IDP) to achieve Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) compliance. Though the technology itself is not prohibitively expensive, the manpower to make it work is. Community banks should consider using a Managed Security Services Provider (MSSP). |
In order to remain competitive, banks must communicate regularly with established and potential clients. Although electronic messaging has accelerated the process and reduced the cost, evolving threats such as phishing have taken a bite out of e-mail's effectiveness as a marketing and communications tool. Strongly consider e-mail certification services to implement more secure client-side messaging. |
Automated teller machines (ATMs) are potentially lucrative sources of cash for creative thieves with basic computer skills. Criminals are using factory default passwords and user manuals – both freely available on the Internet – to reprogram the machines to dispense as much cash as they can carry. Banks and financial institutions must tighten existing security protocols to minimize the risk of exposure. |
In 2006, mobile computing emerged out of its humble PDA and contact management roots to become a growing mainstay of remote business. In 2007, this evolution will continue as mobile phone-based banking begins to make its mark. And the cell phone, not the more powerful smartphone, will drive this growth. |
Although online banking offers banks a lower-cost means of delivering sophisticated services to customers, it comes with a dark side: it increasingly serves as an attack route for identity fraud. Consumer concerns over online banking security threaten to slow down adoption rates. Banks must partner with security software makers to deliver security-enabled tools to convince late-adopting end-users who fear online banking to get on board. |
A new software development kit that will help banks to reach out and secure their clients' machines during online transactions could significantly reduce the potential for fraud. The new resource is called VirtualATM. Banks must investigate tools like this to boost the confidence of consumers that are becoming increasingly anxious about the potential for transaction-focused attacks. |
Services are now available to stream live market data onto smartphones. The ability to receive live market prices and charts on smartphones has made dedicated market quote pagers unnecessary. IT managers in organizations where smartphones are prevalent should recommend this new option to end users. |
Message queuing is critical to modern financial services institutions. Existing solutions like IBM's WebSphere MQ (formerly MQSeries) are proprietary and expensive. A newly-created group has proposed an open-standards-based protocol to address this. Start following the discussion to minimize the eventual implementation effort and maximize competitiveness. |
With all the furor around software-based identity theft, don't forget about physical security. Theft of hardware or storage media can be far more harmful to banks than phishing or keylogging. |
Banks are using sales enablement software to more closely link their sales and marketing efforts. This approach saves money, increases agility, and most importantly strengthens the effectiveness of their sales-related activities. Drive bottom-line bank performance by adding sales enablement strategies and tools to the existing toolkit. |
A lot of fuss has been made about phishing and pharming as threats to the financial services industry. Keyloggers are far more dangerous. Beef up security measures to protect clients' accounts. |
Remote deposit allows checks to be deposited electronically via the Internet. This eliminates client trips to the bank, streamlines operations for both the client and the bank, and allows smaller banks without a large branch footprint to compete more directly with larger institutions. |
US banks must start implementing two-factor authentication for online services by the end of the year to comply with Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) regulations. Cut through the throng of two-factor offerings to find an immediate solution. |
Monitoring mortgage loans is among the most labor-intensive processes for lenders. From approval and rejection to ongoing mortgage management, automated loan tracking can significantly reduce the overhead required to manage this complex environment. Evaluate existing mortgage management processes to drive out reduced cost and risk. |
Enterprise Decision Management (EDM) combines predictive analytics, business rules, and business-user control to optimize how decisions are made. It is the key to capitalizing on business opportunity. |
Rapid advancement and adoption of smart card standards will likely result in increased adoption within the financial services industry. A new operating system that offers high security and deployment flexibility will drive universal adoption of next-generation, secure, smart card infrastructure. |
Banks are increasingly using hosted call center solutions to reduce call handle times and increase the efficiency of existing phone-based staff members. Implement on-demand services to more effectively leverage next-generation call management technologies. |
Banks are starting to use real-time account alerts to placate customers who are skittish about using online services due to identity theft concerns. As losses from phishing and other forms of identity theft continue to mount, strongly consider implementing account alerts to mitigate the damage and reinforce customer trust. |
Since the American Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act—also known as Check 21—was implemented in October 2004, banks have accelerated their migration from paper to electronic checks. Move in that direction now or risk being left behind by more agile competitors. |
The old excuse that the check is in the mail is no longer good enough for banks and insurance companies whose bottom lines rely on prompt payment. Consider implementing automated messaging solutions to ensure money isn’t left on the table. |
Financial services firms rely heavily on their Web sites for customer interaction. Maximizing this resource is becoming easier with increasingly sophisticated Web analytics products. Incorporate some degree of Web analytics into site architecture. |
Application maintenance costs can consume 70% of application budgets. For banks trying to save money on operational costs, software inventory consolidation can help stop the bleeding. Consider application consolidation today as the basis for a more manageable tomorrow. |
Phishers are launching ever more sophisticated waves of spoofing attacks. Do you know enough about this emerging threat to effectively protect your organization's network? Get the answers you need by reading this article. |
Financial services organizations have long wished for something more secure than keyed-in passwords for their customers. Study voice authentication and ID carefully to ensure your customers' voices are heard. |
Patch management can be a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" proposition. Don't patch, and you risk a serious security breach. Patch vigorously, and be called to account for the costs (or worse, for a system that is crashed by a patch). Learn the best practices and establish clear and accountable procedures for patch management. |
Web portals have become the premier interface strategy for today's insurer. Make sure that your carefully deployed, context based Web portal is helping create a competitive advantage for your organization. |
