bankingbpo.com

Ann Knapp asked:


Access to information and entertainment, credit and financial services, and products from every corner of the world is greater than earlier generations could ever have imagined. Thanks to the Internet, consumers may order products, download games and music, or conduct online banking 24 hours a day.

However, the flip side is that the Internet also affords online scammers, hackers, and identity thieves access to personal computers, information, finances, and much more. According to the Federal Trade Commission, there are millions of victims of identity theft a year. It’s often difficult to know how thieves obtain a victim’s personal information, but instances of ID theft often start when online data is stolen.

The following is a glossary of terms, provided by the Federal Trade Commission, aimed at educating consumers on various software and computer scams used to steal and protect individuals from ID theft:

Anti-Virus Softare

Protects personal computers from viruses that can destroy data, slow a computer’s performance, cause a crash, or even allow spammers to send email through a private account.

Bizopps

Shorthand for “business opportunity;” some schemes involve extravagant and unfounded earnings - claims and are actually fraudulent business ventures.

Browser Highjacker

A common spyware program that changes a web browser’s home page automatically, even if the owner changes it back.

CAN-SPAM Act

A law that prohibits senders of unsolicited commercial email from using false or misleading header information or deceptive subject lines, and requires they identify each email as an advertisement, among other provisions.

Download

To copy files from one computer to another; to view a website or other web material with a browser.

Drive-by Download

Software that installs on a computer without the owner’s knowledge when he or she visits certain websites. To avoid drive-by downloads, make sure to update operating system and Web browser regularly.

Encryption

The scrambling of data into a secret code that can be read only by software set to decode the information.

End User Licensing Agreement (EULA)

A provider’s legal terms. An “end user” may be required to “click” to accept before downloading software.

Exposure

When sensitive data is released to someone without authorization.

Filter

Software that screens information on the Internet, classifies its content, and allows the user to block certain kinds of content.

Firewall

Hardware or software that helps keep hackers from using a personal computer to send out personal information without permission.

Hacker

Someone who uses the Internet to access computers without permission.

Hidden Dialers

Programs that a user may unknowingly download that can use a computer to silently dial expensive phone calls which later show up on a phone bill.

IP Address

A computer’s “address,” which consists of a series of numbers separated by periods.

Keystroke Logger

A device or program that records each keystroke typed on a particular computer.

Malware

Criminals sometimes use malware, programs like viruses and spyware, to get into a personal computer. Once there, the criminal can steal information, send spam, and commit fraud

Online Profiling

Compiling information about consumers’ preferences and interests by tracking their online movements and actions in order to create targeted ads.

Personal Information

Information that can identify someone, such as bank and credit card numbers; income; Social Security Number; or name, address and phone numbers

Phishing

A scam that involves Internet fraudsters who send span or pop-up messages to lure personal information from unsuspecting victims.

Spam Zombies

Home computers that have been taken over by spammers who then use them to send spam in a way that hides the true origin.

Spam

Unsolicited commercial email, often sent in bulk qualities.

Spyware

Software program that may be installed on a personal computer without the owner’s consent to monitor his or her use, send pop-up ads, redirect the computer to certain websites, or record keystrokes, which could lead to identity theft.

Trojans

Programs that, when installed on a computer, can enable unauthorized people to access it and sometimes send spam from it.

Virus

A program that can sneak onto a computer - often through an email attachment - and then make copies of itself, quickly using up all available memory.

Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA)

A security protocol developed to fix flaws in WEP. Encrypts data sent to and from wireless devices within a network.

Worm

A program that reproduces itself over a network and can use up a computer’s resources and possibly shut the system down.

With awareness as a safety net, computer users conducting online banking or other activities that require the use of personal information can minimize the chances of identity theft. Vigilance is required when it comes to protecting personal information, a computer, and even yourself.



Content

Shilpa asked:


Are you one of many, who thinks their deposits in nationalised banks are safe, read………….

Generally the persons, who deposit in banks, think if the money is deposited in nationalised banks, their deposits are safe. Because the nationalised banks are owned by government and government will pay them the deposits. But actually it is not so.

Indians have deposited Rs. 9,85,000 Crore in different banks. In last 5 years deposits have shoot up more than 100 %. When share market was going up, the private and co-operative banks were paying about 0.5 % or so more than the nationalised banks and people were putting their money with non-nationalised banks. But now they have lost the trust and they withdraw deposits from other banks and are putting them in nationalised banks, thinking they are doing the right move. But deposits up to Rs. 1 lac per account is insured with any bank - nationalised or private or co-operative banks.

There is a RBI subsidiary company - Deposit Insurance & Credit Guarantee Corporation of India (DICGCI). When we open an account in any bank, the bank pays to DICGCI Rs. 100 as a premium for insurance of Rs. 1 Lac. So if the bank goes insolvent, we may get Rs. 1 Lac maximum. If we want to cover the deposits of more than 1 Lac, we have to purchase a policy separately and we have to pay the premium regularly. Other option is that open more accounts in different banks and do not deposit more than Rs. 90,000 in each account, as the 1 Lac limit is with interest accrued on your deposits. If the account is held in joint name(s), then the first account holder only gets the sum. For joint account the coverage limit remain 1 Lac ( as the insurance is per account).

Central Government provide this shied since 1962. The limit was increased to 1 Lac in 1993. In the last 15 years, there is no change in the limit. Now the depositors demand the limit should be at least 5 Lacs. Since 1969 (after nationalisation of Banks), no bank has gone insolvent, it doesn’t assure that it will never happen. During the period 31 banks turned financially weak but were merged with other banks to protect depositor’s interest. Since last 5 years, banks are giving loans liberally. Loans are given to persons who are not capable of repaying the loan which any time may force banks to bankrupt.

More to note :

Whatever you deposit in Bank’s safe deposit locker in not safe in anyway. In Delhi, safe locker deposit of a bank was looted and no one was paid as the banks provide safe deposit locker facilities under a contract with the customers. According to the Deposit Insurance Act, the deposit insurance scheme is applicable only in the case of winding up, liquidation or amalgamation, etc, of a registered insured bank. As such, theft, robbery and other damages are beyond the purview of the scheme.Now you know you and your deposits are not insured. DICGCI even may not pay the insured 1Lac. (For your reference, deposits with Lehman Brothers were insured and insurance companies had to pay 60,000 Crore US $ to the depositors. But instead of paying the insurance companies have gone to court. And if the court orders to pay then many these companies will be ruined. )

To read more articles, visit our blog.

Interested in Indian share market tips, visit our webiste - http://www.ShareTipsOnline.com



Create a video blog…instantly.

Shaun Parker asked:


Banks and bank services have existed throughout history; it is believed they predate currency and traces of bank records are estimated to have been present in the third millennium B.C. In the ancient world they held grain, cattle and precious metals such as gold and are believed to have carried out their business in temples and palaces as these were the safest places to contain wealth.

The business bank relationship is believed to have begun in ancient Babylon where temple priests granted loans to merchants. It is believed that the first laws in society contained rules for banking and a bank code of conduct. Showing the extent at which banks and society are intertwined.

Ancient Greece took banking further by creating a centralised grain bank network and created credit slips for customers. These slips were used in business and consisted of instructions to bank tellers to perform deposits and withdrawals. This can be seen as a strengthening of the business bank relationship.

The Roman Empire perfected banking; being obsessed with administration, banks took a more recognisable form as increasing amounts of paperwork were involved in transactions. Detailed bank regulations and laws were also created to define the industry. The Romans also created the first bank charges in the form of interest. The business however experienced a downturn with the rise of Christianity as interest charges were seen as immoral; subsequently bank services dwindled in Western Europe until the time of the crusades.

The medieval period saw a revival for the business bank relationship. Trade fairs present in most major European cities began to create bills of exchange where notes were given in exchange for hard currency. These bills were redeemable at other cities and hence eliminated the necessity to carry huge fortunes across country; forming a far safer option for merchants. This need for the transfer of large sums of money was a direct result of the crusades and as the banks redeemed the bills in line with exchange rates and inflation, bank services started to become profitable.

Throughout the later medieval period the Italian bankers of Lombardy and Genoa became the financial powerhouses of the Mediterranean. Their loans allowed business to flourish as overseas trade became a mainstay of any nation’s economy. Italian bankers spread throughout Europe and appeared in many European cities. Although problems did arise when defaulted payments by monarchs caused the bank services to become political issues.

During the beginning of the modern period the business bank relationship was further enhanced. Expeditions to the new world were funded by banks in Spain and Portugal; such journeys became profitable for the bank tellers as the returns became vast after the initial outlay. In Britain, new trade businesses used banks to fund their activities in the new world with tobacco and coffee imports from the Indies being extremely profitable.

Bank services and loans were the backbone of the industrial revolution in Britain. Without the funding that supported the entrepreneurs the improvements to the transport network and creation of evermore complex steam engines would not have been possible. It is thanks to the banking that Britain became the richest nation in the world, the empire was dependent upon loans and the reason it expanded to such a huge extent was the desire to repay these sums of money.

In the modern world global bank services have shrunk the world. Transfers are now instantaneous and banks fund vast projects on a worldwide basis. The profits they gain break records on a regular basis, figures of twenty and thirty billion are not uncommon for the world’s largest banks. These sums make some banks wealthier than nations and subsequently the favour they hold in politics and business is seemingly unassailable.

Bank services have provided financial support for the business world since the beginnings of civilisation; today they hold a position of power as entrenched as many political systems. In many cases bank services have been fundamental in the formation of nations and political systems and have funded the exploration and empire building that has created the world we see today. The close business bank relationship is profitable for both sides, as long as banks are willing to fund entrepreneurial schemes the relationship is set to continue indefinitely.



Website content

Ramapati Singhania asked:


The banking sector of the British Virgin Islands is strong and dynamic with the availability of modern international banking services. It offers access to clients 365 days a year and though it also offers internet banking with a USD account, other major currency deposits are also accepted.

However BVI banks do not issue corporate debit cards and companies involved in ecommerce are not accepted but it offers customers USD corporate chequing accounts. On the other hand BVI banking services offers debit cards on personal accounts.

The first Caribbean International bank (FCIB), First bank BVI and VP bank (BVI) are the prominent banks of British Virgin Islands with FCIB specializing in international banking, offshore banking services for IBCs, internet banking facilities and international credit cards.

Certain documents are required by the banks prior to opening an account in BVI. Below is a general guideline for existing BVI banking services.

The documents that banks generally ask for are permanent address verification report, a duly completed and signed bank application form, certificate of incorporation certified copy, memorandum and articles of association certified copy, two picture IDs in the form of passport/drivers license (certified copy), a reference letter from a bank and a board resolution appointing authorized signatories.

BVI banks consider the passport to be the most authentic document for identification purposes and hence the passport should be notarized. Once the bank related documents are submitted to the concerned bank the particular BVI bank account should be activated within two working days from the receipt of the documents by depositing the minimum initial deposit which is 2,500 US dollars. Though documentary requirements may vary from bank to bank generally, they will need to know and identify the actual owner/owners and everyone else who has been given account signatory rights.

Although personal appearance of the owner of the company is not necessary while opening an account in a BVI bank, still laws regulating the banking industry make it mandatory for banks to know their clients background thoroughly, and they also require an account introduction through an approved intermediary. Approved intermediaries are in the form of professional incorporation service providers based in the British Virgin Islands.

Banking secrecy is a fundamental cornerstone of BVI banking services and under no circumstances can a clients background information be leaked to a third party. This is the reason why BVI banks are very particular with documents prior to opening an account because while protecting a clients background they never want to be caught on the wrong foot.

However there are instances when a clients information may be divulged by a BVI bank and these may be under a proper criminal investigation carried out by local police authorities in-land or when ordered by a court in BVI.

BVI Information: British Virgin Islands is one of the most beautiful territories in the Caribbean. Its total area is just around 150 sq km compromising of 60 islands and even the population is in few thousands.

British Virgin Islands is under British authority and some key points are summarized below:

* Many mutual and hedge funds, insurance companies, trading companies, expatriate individuals, intellectual property rights owners, property investors and just high net worth individuals use BVI banking offshore to pay fewer taxes and save wealth.

* There is no restriction on the nationality of the bank account owner, however most banks prefer that the individual accounts be opened along with corporate accounts, of companies incorporated in the BVI.

* Privacy and confidentiality come as a given but we have to wait and see how the UK reacts to pressures from the EU for BVI bank disclosures.

* Account holders are just charged with few thousand dollars every year for the license fees of banks.

* 9/11 has changed the concept of privacy as it was accepted by us. Now governments, in the name of anti-terror laws have started usurping authority to look into anyones personal information for no strong reason.

* Its not just about privacy and taxes, banking BVI Offshore gives you all the luxuries that you can get in a world class bank.

* World class infrastructure, communication systems, modern day facilities like credit cards, internet, online banking and courier services are available in British Virgin Islands.

* You will also be saved from the tensions of legal issues as someone rarely thinks of filing a suit in a far away country and even if someone does plan to, there is legal protection provided to you in the British Virgin Islands, as in other offshore tax havens.



Create a video blog…instantly.

Michael J. Kelly asked:


Ask any IT sales person to construct a wish list of their top ten most-desirable customers and, chances are, a retail bank will appear somewhere near the top. On the face of it, the entire financial services marketplace is a fast-changing, highly competitive business environment in which efficient technology is crucial. But for some IT vendors, retail banks still remain an elusive target market. Why?

 

As with most other types of commercial institution, the economic downturn has meant a big shift in attitude for the retail banks. Instead of investing in new software to help attract customers, they want to focus on maximising the potential of existing systems.

 

This attitude is in sharp contrast to the previous desire for enterprise-wide systems that promised competitive differentiation, and has been exacerbated by the investment which many banks have made in costly CRM solutions that failed to deliver the promised returns. Now, they must focus on protecting and retaining existing customers using existing technology.

 

The first step to a sale…

The key to sales success with a retail bank is to understand these changes and recognise what it is the banks want from their technology right now. For IT vendors, this could mean re-engineering the sales message to reflect banks’ new priorities. A salesperson that persists in talking about technology as a means to achieving competitive advantage is missing out on precious sales opportunities because they are failing to observe their target customers’ current business objectives.

 

The most successful sales proposition is one which promises to drive up efficiency. For example, applications that monitor and improve call centre efficiency. 

 

Know who’s who

Once your sales force is equipped with the right message, the next crucial step is to identify to whom that message should be delivered. One of the biggest challenges to technology firms keen to sell into this lucrative marketplace is the complex process of decision-making within the retail banks. 

 

At this point there is no substitute for hard graft. Getting round and talking to each of the parties that will be affected by your product or service is the only way to ensure a fully developed sales pitch which addresses the needs of staff throughout the organization. It will also ensure no ‘chinks’ in the decision-making chain are missed.

 

To sell a remote-working solution, for example, salespeople need to talk to the remote workers themselves, to address any concerns about ease-of-use. It’s also crucial to talk to the IT professional whose job it is to implement the solution and see that it is functioning correctly. Good practice includes presenting to the financial director who may have final sign-off.

 

Avoid the veto

Another reason why some technology vendors have difficulty selling to retail banks is that IT purchasing decisions are often overseen by ‘IT architecture and strategy’ bodies residing deep within each institution. These are often superior to the IT department in rank and have the power to veto a technology buying decision if the technology has not been approved across the entire organisation, even in instances when the financial director has agreed to a purchase.

  

The best way to avoid a veto is to identify some of the strategic influencers and engage them in conversation early on in the sales cycle. This will help identify any potential compliance issues that may arise later in the process, allowing time to address any gaps between the product and the requirements of the IT architecture and strategy body.  If the product alone cannot fulfill these requirements, forming an alliance with other IT experts is a useful route to presenting a comprehensive and compatible solution.

  

Room for a small one?

Selling new technology to retail banks is a challenge for a sales team even in the most profitable times. But when tougher economic conditions prevail, conditions can be particularly cruel for smaller tech companies. Not only are retail banks most likely to use their IT budget on ’safe’ purchases such as replacement technologies but banks are naturally sceptical of dealing with IT companies they do not have experience with.

In this case, the best way forward for a smaller vendor is to focus on appreciating the current priorities of retail banks, and on selling to those individuals within each department that may have an influence on the decision-making chain. Stick to the basics, and you can greatly increase your chances of success this year in what remains a highly desirable and lucrative target market.

 



Content

Paramantapa Dasgupta asked:


An Introduction to Mobile Banking

By Paramantapa Dasgupta

After Internet Banking, Mobile Banking or M-Banking has become the buzz word in the industry. It’s a fact that Internet Banking has given a boost and has shown a successful way to consider it as a good alternative procedure against physical branch banking. Now where ever you are, you can access your bank account and you can do lot more things like checking your account balance, transfer money to some other account, pay your utility bills online and so on, just by comfortably sitting at your home or office. But, the technical disadvantage of Internet Banking is, you have to have internet connectivity and a computer. Definitely it’s not a big hindrance in US or Europe or in the other developed countries, but if one considers the developing economies, then it’s a genuine problem and more specifically in the tier II cities.

And here Mobile Banking comes into the picture to address the basic limitation of Internet Banking. If we only consider Asian developing countries, the availability of mobile connectivity is really huge. Where one may not find out a landline telephone or an internet connection, but still in those remote places getting mobile connectivity is not a major issue today.

So, Mobile Banking has given the traditional banking a newer look “Anywhere Banking”. Now you don’t need a PC or a laptop with internet connectivity, just you need your cell phone with you. Considering the Asian economy countries like China, India and Korea have seen the mobile boom in last one decade. A projected value of mobile connectivity in India shows that it will touch 180 Million subscribers by the end of 2008, where it was pegged at around 2 Million in the year 2000. In Korea, more than 70% of the entire population is carrying mobile devices.

The biggest advantage Mobile Banking provides to the banks is that it helps to cut down the costs as it’s even more economic than providing tele-banking facilities where banks have to keep hundreds of tele-callers. Additionally, Mobile Banking helps banks to upgrade the quality of services and nature of customer relationship management. Using Mobile Banking, banks can communicate to the defined cluster of clients. The offers can be customized and this personalization can give the banking industry a huge mileage, even at a lower cost. Again, using the same mobile channels, banks can up-sell and cross-sell their highly complex financial products to the specific set of customers which can be coupled with the selling strategies of Credit Cards, Home Loans and Personal Loans etc. On the contrary, the service providers can also accrue more business by providing the Mobile Banking services to their clients. Countries like Japan, Korea or Singapore where the mobile connectivity has already reached its saturation, the service providers can make handsome business by providing additional banking services to the same static client base.

In the services front, different banking services can be provided, depending upon the banking regulations in respective countries which may include Account Balance Enquiry, Account Statement Enquiry, Credit/Debit Alerts, Bill Payment Alerts, Cheque Book Requisition, Transaction History, Minimum Balance Alerts, Fund Transfer Facilities, etc.

Mobile Banking activities can be categorized in two different manners.

1. By the Nature of Service: It can be any of the two, either Enquiry Based or Transaction Based. For example, Account Balance Enquiry or a Cheque Book Requisition can be the good examples of Enquiry Based Services where a Fund Transfer or a Bill Payment is a Transaction Based activity.

2. Depending on the Originator: Again there can be two different types of services; Push and Pull, depending on the nature of the originator. A Push based service is from the Bank to the Client and vice versa. For example, Bill Payment Alert can be a Push based service, when getting Recent Account History is a Pull based one.

In different countries, Mobile Banking has already gained its popularity. For example, in the South Korean market LG Telecom teamed up with Kookmin Bank to provide their Mobile Banking services in 2004 and since then they have seen a nice and steady growth. In India, Reliance Infocomm has started providing Mobile banking services to ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank through their R-World environment.

The Mobile Banking services will become more popular once the availability of the smart phones or PDA phones shall increase as Smart Phones come with larger screens and bigger memory size. In the application development front, both J2ME and BREW have done excellent work and industry expects by the year 2012, more than 80% of the mobile handsets will be able to run stand alone Mobile Banking applications and that time it will be “Anywhere Banking” in real sense.



Content - Members-Only Content for WordPress

GerbilGod7 asked:

http://www.ohgizmo.com/2007/02/20/microsoft-photosynth-now-available-in-beta/

Photo tourism is a system for browsing large collections of photographs in 3D, developed by the University of Washington: http://phototour.cs.washington.edu/

Content for WordPress

casanova218 asked:

a cracking tutorial showing u how to crack an actual software…in this case the software is 4Disk Clean Gold 5.5

if u dont have the tools i have used go to the following links:

4Disk Clean Gold 5.5:
http://tracker.5star-network.com/download.mis?id=17890&siteId=6

hiew:
http://www.4shared.com/file/54716030/c376bd15/Hiew.html

W32Dasm:
http://www.4shared.com/file/54716344/891c5192/W32Dasm_8.html

note: if the links dont work..please let me know and i will update them

Content - Members-Only Content for WordPress

Gloria Smith asked:


Do you still queue up in the bank to pay your credit card bills or patiently wait for your bank statement to arrive in the mail?  Welcome to the internet age.  Online banking has now become an alternative to going to the bank physically to transact business.  It uses today’s advanced computer technology to give users the option of doing away with the time-consuming and paper-based aspects of conventional banking in order to better manage finances more efficiently and easily.

With internet banking, you can monitor and perform banking transactions online, whenever and wherever you want as long as there is internet access.  It lets you bank with maximum convenience, ease and security through the latest technology and it is for free.

Online banking offers a varied array of convenient and secure features for customer banking needs.  Suffice it to say, you can do almost everything you need to do from the comfort of your home or office.  Moreover, internet banking has been enhanced with even more customer-friendly improvements to make online banking much easier and safer.

Bills Payment – There is no need to line up at payment centers to meet your payment due dates.  Pay your utility and credit card bills online at your convenience.  You can also set up scheduled payments for recurring transactions.  You get to receive an online payment confirmation number for reference.  This service also allows you to view pending and past payments.  You can add payees as well as delete payees you have created.

Account Details – Keep track and manage your accounts anytime, anywhere.  View balances and updated transactions of your savings and checking accounts credit card statements, time deposits and loan accounts.  Peruse your previous transactions.  Export your transactions into a selected range of personal financial management software packages.  You can even print your account statements.

Electronic Statements – With electronic statement, there is no more waiting for the mail.  You can receive your bank statement through email or view online all day any day.  Access past statements for easy reference.  Some banks even offer interactive electronic statements with check images and notices and search for specifics such as check numbers and amounts.

Fund Transfers – Transfer funds between your accounts within the bank or just as easily to other accounts in other local or foreign banks.  For transfer to other accounts, an online activation code is used to ensure that funds are transferred only to registered payees.  You can also request for demand drafts.  Set up scheduled transfers to accounts within your bank.  Define the amount, affectivity and frequency of your payments.

Banking Alerts – Receive email alerts notifying you of important bank and credit card movements.  If your balance falls below the minimum requirement or a posted check caused large withdrawal from your account; an alert will be sent for your review. 

Banking Services – Book time deposit and provide instructions online.  Order new checkbooks.  Request for stop payments on checks.  View posted check images online.  Obtain quotes for investment products.  Purchase bank draft.  Request to open new accounts.  Enquire about the latest interest and foreign rates.  Pay taxes online.

Online Security – Banks use the latest and most secure technology.  SSL encryption codes protect online bank transactions.  Users are also given Security Device that generates a unique code to ensure bank transactions enjoy a high level of security.  Other online security features include computer firewall protection, user ID and password authentication with code encryption and digital certificates.



Create a video blog…instantly.

Finacle - Infosys asked:


Financial institutions have started to give a serious look at the small & medium enterprises segment due to issues like global economic slowdown and want of better profit. But, there is a need to keep in mind that business scope and legal structure of the firm are criteria that should not to be overlooked while approaching the SMEs. The approach best suited for a bank should be dependent on existing customer profile and the strategic objective behind SME initiative. Some banks view SME banking as a specialized division within the bank. They claim that SME customers have specific needs, demand greater flexibility and need personal touch. However, this could mean higher operating cost and needs higher breakeven volumes. Some other banks consider SME banking as an extension of High Net Worth (HNW) banking. The basic idea is that owners of businesses are retail customers of the bank. On-line SME Banking offering is effectively a toned up version of the Retail Internet Banking offering. A comprehensive offering, an easy to use and secure service, a stable technological platform (downtimes can easily create life-long skeptics!) and marketing push in terms of product demonstrations and incentives to use are critical to its success. The future is bright for the banks who can carefully balance the tread.

This paper highlights approaches to SME banking that banks follow as well as the service expectations from on-line SME offering as it is one of the most efficient methods of delivering banking services and products to the SME segment and banks need to take higher efforts to increase adoption of the same.

Enticing SMEs- The Online Banking Way



Create a video blog