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December 21, 2009 - December 25, 2009
* SMA Introduces Managed Services Offering EnCompass Software Management & Associates (SMA), a privately owned American corporation headquartered near Houston that serves more than 125 credit unions of all sizes, announced a new managed services-led offering called EnCompass. SMA’s EnCompass permits credit unions to enjoy a higher level of support and collaborative implementation of OpCon/xps within a well documented and controlled pricing structure. SMA’s OpCon/xps automates, monitors, controls and tracks the Episys core processing software and many other applications and processes, delivering automation and control for the Symitar suite of credit union software, and other core systems. Computer manufacturers have long touted all-in-one desktop PCs as space-saving wonders because they are not much bigger than a monitor. They are also a good bargain - typically selling for about one-third less than a standard desktop PC with a separate monitor. Plus they save on electricity because many of their parts have a laptop lineage. Some models use notebook-style external AC adapters, low-power processors, and downsized hard drives and DVD drives, all of which use less electricity than traditional desktop components. Here are four models that cost $600 or less that your credit union may want to consider: the Acer Veriton Z280G, the Averatec D1133, the HP Pavilion MS214 and the MSI Wind Top AE1900.
Microsoft is working with PC makers including Dell, HP and Lenovo on Windows 7 bundles for small and mid-sized businesses. For many SMB users, Windows 7 Professional is likely to be the right fit. Professional costs $199 (for an upgrade from a previous version of Windows) and $299 for a new, full retail version. Windows 7 Professional includes location-aware printing, domain join, XP Mode, encrypted file system, and remote-desktop connectivity. However, it doesn’t include BitLocker/BitLocker To Go encryption, DirectAccess (VPN replacement technology), BranchCache, AppLocker and the ability to boot from VHD (all of which are Enterprise and Ultimate features).
A survey by Fifth Third Processing Solutions reveals that few financial institutions feel completely confident that their ATMs are fully protected from a security standpoint. Furthermore, an overwhelming number really did not know their internal practices for how often software or content is distributed to their ATMs. With ATMs taking on more functionality, it becomes even more important for ATM deployers to have a reliable method in place to distribute marketing content, software patches and new releases of ATM applications.
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Biometric Digest Highlights - WWW.BIODIGEST.COM Israel's Bank Leumi is introducing a password re-set feature for their online bankers that is operated by voice biometrics. The new system, supplied by Verint spin-off PerSay, enables online bankers to reset their e-banking passwords 24 hours a day. A PerSay spokesperson said "the "color of my cat" and "my wife's maiden name" are questions that belong to the past. Looking forward, we see more and more financial institutions and other service providers, adopting voice biometrics as an essential element in their security and risk management procedures."
MasterCard Canada and Research In Motion, maker of the popular BlackBerry handsets, announced a four-month pilot in Canada in which BlackBerry users will attach contactless tags - chip-and-antenna tags with adhesive backing - to their handsets to turn them into contactless payment devices at 8,500 locations in Canada accepting MasterCard PayPass. The added twist on current contactless tags for mobile phones is that the user will get a confirmation e-mail of each transaction on their BlackBerry. Meanwhile, PayPal announced that its mobile Send Money application is now available for BlackBerry handsets. PayPal already offers similar applications for Apple's iPhone and handsets that use the Android operating system from Google. The Top Vulnerable Applications for IT 2009 report was just released by Bit9, and is based on the National Institute of Standards and Technology's database. Adobe's Acrobat, Flash Player, Reader, and Shockwave were at the top of the list, with vulnerabilities that were labeled as "high" by NIST. Also on the list of most vulnerable apps of the year are Apple Quicktime, Mozilla Firefox, Opera, RealPlayer, Sun Java, and Trillian. According to Bit9, the list encompasses applications that run on Windows, are frequently downloaded by individuals, and are not considered malicious by IT organizations or security vendors. Core Systems: Helping CUs Focus on Opportunities
According to the Aite Group, nearly half of all consumers belong to a financial services rewards program, with 70% of all credit cardholders owning at least one rewards-based card. Rewards card ownership increases consumers' credit card usage and purchase consideration, and even improves marketers' ability to target card holders. However Aite says that program profitability will continue to be a problem - only those that get it right will achieve monetary success with their offerings. "The profitability of debit card rewards programs varies widely depending on penetration rates, activation rates, program costs and increases in spending levels," says Ron Shevlin, senior analyst with Aite Group and author of the report. "Increased penetration, adoption and spending rates will be critical determinants of profitability for financial institutions' loyalty programs." Online Banking/E-Commerce/Website Design The United Kingdom's major financial institutions have voted to stop clearing checks by October 2018, bringing to an end the 350 year old payment method. A review will be conducted in 2016 to determine whether sufficient progress in providing viable alternatives has been made to press ahead with the abolition by 2018. With checks costing around $1.50 to process, four times as much as electronic payments, the move could save financial institutions hundreds of millions a year. Major retailers and supermarkets in the UK are either phasing out or have already stopped taking checks. ADTRAN, a provider of converged communications solutions, has introduced their NetVanta Unified Communications Solution Suite. These solutions offer voice mail, unified messaging, fax server and auto attendant, and also enable personalized UC for each individual employee. The NetVanta UC Solutions Suite includes NetVanta UC Server; NetVanta Business Communications System; NetVanta Enterprise Communications Server; and NetVanta Business Application Server, and can accommodate from five to over 2,000 users per server. Broadcore, a provider of hosted unified communications services, announced the launch of Broadcore Call Center, a hosted solution for contact centers. The hosted solution features multi-location support and advanced disaster recovery capabilities. It provides integrated real-time status and presence for agents and supervisors in multiple locations. The system also supports virtual agents and helps supervisors to manage queues online with real-time dashboard and comprehensive statistical reports. The solution supports a variety of diverse voice endpoints such as standard session initiation protocol (SIP) telephones such as Cisco, Polycom, and Aastra phones, and also soft-phones, mobile phones, SIP-based analog adapters, and cordless phones.
Inbound Telecom Disaster Recovery
Nothing is more important than serving your members. Telecom Recovery, which protects the communications for dozens of credit unions across the US, has a very powerful - and low cost - technology that protects your inbound calls during any kind of outage including:
Catch Tom and Bill Rogers, Associate Editor of Credit Union tech-talk at the following conferences in 2009: February 21-25, Washington - CUNA Governmental Affairs Conference May 19-21, Las Vegas - Credit Union InfoSecurity Conference
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