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May 9, 2011 - May 13, 2011
General News
* Open Solutions Launches DNAappstore & DNAcreator
* Affinity Plus FCU Partners with PSCU for Online Banking
* ESP converts 2 CUs to FORZA³
* Ongoing Operations Launches New BC Workshops
* S1 Signs CEFCU for Online & Mobile Banking
Open Solutions, a leading provider of open, relationship-centered core banking platforms for credit unions across the United States, Canada and other international markets, announced the launch of two new solutions: DNAappstore, an online marketplace to advance global collaboration and innovation for credit unions, and DNAcreator, a suite of tools for creating applications. DNAcreator puts the same tools that Open Solutions uses to develop applications into the hands of clients and their partners, while DNAappstore is an online marketplace where developers are free to share their applications, and interact directly with other developers and users.
Affinity Plus Federal Credit Union of St. Paul, MN has signed a seven-year contract for electronic banking from PSCU Financial Services. Adding online banking to their current bill pay relationship with the cooperative allows credit union employees to focus on developing an integrated, expanded virtual branch environment for their members.
Enhanced Software Products, a credit union core data processing provider with more than 14 years of experience, has converted two credit unions to their FORZA³ core processing system: Hartford Firefighters Federal CU (Hartford, CT), and Union Pacific Employees CU (Beaumont, TX), Both credit unions will run in ESP’s Hosted Environment.
Ongoing Operations, a leading business continuity CUSO serving credit unions nationwide, is introducing a brand new format for its regional business continuity events. The new P3 (Plan, Prepare, Protect) Business Continuity Workshops will be more interactive in nature and feature dynamic agendas, and are open to all interested credit unions, not just current Ongoing Operations clients.
S1 Corporation, a leading global provider of payments and financial services software solutions, announced that CEFCU has licensed their online and mobile banking, new account opening, and out-of-band authentication solutions. Members of the Peoria, IL-based credit union will be able to manage their account balances, open new accounts online, utilize enhanced fraud control features, and initiate secure payments from their accounts to PayPal users using their mobile phones.
Hardware News
Belkin released its new line of Advanced Secure Keyboard-Video-Mouse (KVM) switches that provide a host of new features, including data path isolation. The new Advanced Secure KVM switches are designed specifically for securing access to multiple systems and different classes of networks from a single user console. Employing optics, rather than electronic circuits or firmware, the optical data diode ensures that data flows only from approved peripheral devices (keyboard, mouse, data card readers) to the selected PC. This design guarantees that in the event of a breach, infected secure networks cannot transfer information to an unsecured network via measured state change delays of the peripherals.
Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) promises significant savings over individual desktops, but some organizations fail to take into ancillary costs that can really add up. We will cover these costs and how to contain them in the June issue of Credit Union tech-talk - subscribe now.
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Hardware Section Sponsored by
Millennial Vision, Inc. (MVi)
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Software Updates
Acronis released the latest version of its backup and recovery software, which combines file and bare metal backup and restoration. Aimed at small- to medium-sized organizations, Acronis Backup & Recovery 11 handles machine images, physical and virtual machine (VM) data protection, but it can also restore an entire system down to the OS. The software includes cataloguing and search functions that span files stored on local disk, remote disk or tape-based systems. Files can be searched by their type, name or the time of the backups, and then they can be restored with a single mouse click. Another upgrade to Acronis Backup & Recovery software is its ability to backup VMs in parallel.
VMware has integrated Microsoft's Active Directory with its vCenter Orchestrator tool. The VMware vCenter Orchestrator Plug-in for Microsoft Active Directory allows IT departments to automate the management of directory services tasks and is compatible with Active Directory 2003 and 2008. It comes with 34 pre-built workflows, including the ability to create a user in an organizational unit and set a password.
Microsoft's Small Business Server (SBS) is naturally aimed at small organizations, but it comes with a fully functional copy of Exchange 2010 SP1. Yet, many SBS users probably aren't taking advantage of what the SBS-Exchange combo can do, so we will offer some migration tips in the June issue of Credit Union tech-talk - subscribe today.
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Software Updates Sponsored by
Raddon Financial Group (RFG)
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ATMs/Kiosks
GRGBanking recently published a white paper on ATM hygiene which highlights the public health aspect of keeping ATMs clean. The Chinese ATM manufacturer's white paper points out that studies have shown that over two-thirds of ATM machine keypads examined were contaminated with some bacteria. GRG recommends the regular use of ATM cleaning kits in an effort to help keep ATM users happy with their ATM interactions.
The advanced “ABIL” ATMs from Spanish bank BBVA are getting excellent reviews. The high tech machines allow you to choose the note denominations for the cash dispensed via a single slot that dispenses and receives cash, plus it comes with a special drawer for coins. Additionally, its deposit functionality has the ability to give back change, e.g., put in a 10 euro note, instruct a deposit of 8.50 euros to your account, and ABIL will provide 1.50 change in euro coins.
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CU Success Stories
Here is a chance to learn about real life credit union success stories from various technology vendors through the words of their clients. This week's vendor is:
Triton
and their client is:
Alabama Credit Union
Credit Unions - if you have a vendor that you are happy with then please let us know!
Vendors - if you have a credit union that is happy with your solutions then please let us know and we will give you a $100 discount on your Case Study!
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Wireless World
According to a Juniper Research report, more than 500 million people are expected to use their smartphones as a mobile ticket by 2015. Consumers will be able to use their smartphones to pay for travel, sporting, and entertainment events via an e-commerce site or over the phone, store the ticket on their mobile device, and redeem it at a physical ticket kiosk. Although mobile ticketing will be convenient for consumers and reduce costs for vendors, barriers to mainstream implementation include a lack of a clear business model, handset and reader availability, and user support.
The Aite Group has released analysis of mobile banking consumer behaviors that indicates that credit unions will have to make significant investments to improve or develop their mobile marketing capabilities. A senior analyst with Aite Group noted that “the internal struggle has been how to justify investments in this channel and what types of services to deploy next. Based on consumer behavior, mobile marketing functionality can provide the justification for and the answer behind what to deploy.”
CO-OP Financial Services has introduced CO-OP Mobile Text which offers text banking as a standalone service for $0.12 per transaction, with no additional account verification fee. With CO-OP Mobile Text, a credit union member can send a text message for an account inquiry and receive information back promptly. The service enables members to verify balances, view transaction history and transfer funds within their accounts. CO-OP Financial Services provides the short code to minimize credit union expense.
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Security Section
Metasploit, the open source penetration testing solution, has been updated to version 3.7. The Data Import backend has undergone a rewrite, speeding up most import tasks by a factor of four. Metasploit Pro users will note that shell sessions can now be accessed by multiple users at a time. This allows an entire team to collaborate on the post-exploitation process and can be used as a training aid. In addition to these improvements, this release adds 67 new modules consisting of 35 exploits, 17 post-exploitation modules, and 15 auxiliary modules.
The malicious bank Trojan ZeuS is back and it is targeting members of NACHA (National Automated Clearing House Association). Cybercriminals are sending targeted emails to NACHA members in an attempt to lure them into downloading and installing attachments containing ZeuS malware. The spoofed emails appear to come from NACHA and inform customers that a transaction sent by them, their FI or some other party has failed.
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Security Section Sponsored by
ISN
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CU InfoSecurity Conference
The CU InfoSecurity Conference is the original and premier conference dedicated solely to credit union security. Here are just some of the comments that we will be covering at this year's summit:
Whitelisting
Fighting Malware
Securing the CU Cloud
Securing Mobile Banking
Social Media Compliance
Minimizing Security Threats
Integrating Physical & Logical Security
Bringing Business Intelligence to SIEM
Single Sign-on & Strong Authentication
Card Fraud Detection & Prevention Trends
Staying Secure & Keeping the Auditors Happy
We still have deluxe rooms reserved at the beautiful M Resort until Monday May 23rd - here are what people are saying about the resort:
"This hotel is absolutely a 5 star experience! The rooms are gorgeous, and very nicely appointed."
"The rooms are outstanding with a beautiful view of the Strip and the ultimate in high-tech gadgets in the room."
"The entire property is immaculate and the super friendly staff goes out of their way to make sure you are comfortable."
More Info & Register Now ~ 800.808.2188
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Leaders Roundtable
Security:
Securing the Credit Union from the Inside to the Outside
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Technology and Marketing
Some features of a green branch include high-efficiency lighting and plumbing fixtures, recycled content in flooring and counter finish products, refurbished office furniture, and non-Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) paint. Some institutions are also extending their green offerings to include higher interest rates to members who go paperless and debit cards made of 100% recycled plastic, recycled checks, as well as printing statements using responsible paper products and soy and vegetable inks.
MathMastery announced that Pentagon Federal Credit Union has signed with them to provide financial literacy services to its members in both English and Spanish. MathMastery is an online resource designed to help students, teachers and parents learn, practice and understand essential math skills.
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Technology & Marketing Section Sponsored by
MARQUIS Software Solutions
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Online Banking/E-Commerce/Website Design
The retail gift card from Smart Transaction Systems allows users to see their balances at any time via a special type of bar code readable by many smartphones. The card itself does not have any special hardware built in, but instead uses a Quick Response code printed onto stored value and loyalty cards. BlackBerry and Android phones are able to read them with built-in software and free QR code-scanning programs are available for other smartphone platforms, including the iPhone.
Compass Plus announced the availability of the TranzWare Online Universal Payment Gateway that enables credit unions to quickly build interfaces, if not already available from Compass Plus’ library, for the connection to payment or billing applications. The Universal Payment Gateway is part of TranzWare Online, which provides credit unions with the ability to switch, route, authorize and manage electronic payments from multiple devices and delivery channels on a single platform.
EstateLogic, offered by Executor’s Resource, is being offered to Bellco Credit Union members to provide them with web-based storage for their estate planning. The system helps members catalog and store not only important documents such as wills, tax returns, birth certificates, but also passwords, photo albums, diaries, videos, etc. The platform provides action plans and checklists, and utilizes four categories: 1) Important Documents; 2) Financials; 3) Legacy; and 4) Personal Instructions. The Colorado-based credit union's members pay a monthly fee from $3.65 to $12.85.
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Online Banking Section Sponsored by
Confident Technologies
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Online authentication has traditionally involved a trade-off between security and usability. A single layer of password authentication is not secure, but strong authentication processes such as hardware tokens and smart cards are costly, difficult to maintain and inconvenient for your members.
Credit unions can reduce costs and increase revenue by encouraging more members to conduct business on the Web, but many consumers are still wary of online banking. In fact, 30% of consumers cite security concerns as one of the primary reasons they don’t bank online.
This white paper from Confident Technologies will examine the security threats associated with weak authentication practices on the Web, and describe new approaches for easily and affordably adding a second layer of authentication on the website that is both highly secure and easy on people.
Image-based authentication solutions from Confident Technologies can help increase security, reduce support costs and improve the member experience by adding one-time passwords using an intuitive, picture-based approach.
This white paper also describes how image-based authentication can be used with mobile phones for two-factor authentication that is more secure than sending authentication codes by SMS text message.
Click here to access the white paper.
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Internet Access
Alcatel-Lucent’s latest version of its OmniPCX Office is designed for organizations with up to 236 employees. The updated system called OmniPCX Office Rich Communication Edition (RCE) Release 8 incorporates more features in the basic software suite, adds a more powerful CPU with native VoIP support, introduces flexible hardware/software packages and increases a number of capacities (e.g. 32 active call center agents, 20 greetings, 200 PIMphony sessions, four languages and built-in 4-hour voicemail). Customers deploy a combination of the OmniPCX Office hardware for telephony services and the Extended Communication Server (ECS) for shared and secure Internet access, remote access for mobile employees, e-mail, Web servers and unified communications and collaborative applications. There are four packages for the OmniPCX Office and two for the ECS.
Hughes Network Systems announced the availability of new managed services suite for enterprises that integrates voice, data and video over affordable broadband. Hughes, a provider of broadband satellite networks and services, says that their ActiveQoS solution is a new network optimization technology that enables 'MPLS-like' performance over high-speed, affordable DSL and cable broadband connections.
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Call Centers
The RCCSP Professional Education Alliance offers a multipart Call Center Supervision Web-Based Training Series with optional supervisor certification. This training series is designed specifically for the specialized training needs of contact center supervisors and managers. Participants will learn best practices in staffing, workforce management, monitoring form design and calibration, agent monitoring and effective coaching techniques and performance management. Additional focus is directed toward the unique aspects of call center operations, such as calculating staffing requirements, understanding call center technology, and complying with labor regulations.
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Call Centers Section Sponsored by
Better Branches
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Conferences
Catch Tom and Bill Rogers, Associate Editor of Credit Union tech-talk, at these upcoming conferences:
June 15-17, Las Vegas - Credit Union InfoSecurity Conference
October 9-12, New Orleans - Firefighters’ National Credit Union Summit
November 5-9, Palm Springs - Reaching Your Members in the 21st Century
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