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The last time you visited your bank, you may have been deluged by their brochures announcing the launch of their online services. By now, you probably know their pitch very well: “No more waiting in long lines.” That sure is a big point for you if, for the longest time, you’ve been queueing for your turn during the Christmas rush, during regular paydays that fall on Fridays, or on the last day of filing for income taxes.

We’re going to run you through the basics of online banking and the benefits you can derive from availing of this service. Online banking is a spin off of phone banking, which was introduced in the late 90s as an alternative to actually going to the bank to do your transactions. Phone banking gives you access to your current account whenever you dial a special number. Online banking extends this service by offering you a direct means of managing your current account. Results are instantaneous and you can use your account even beyond normal banking hours.

You can enjoy the following services when banking online:
• Transaction history. Updating your passbook has never been easier than this.You can view transactions several months back, download it to your computer, or print it for future reference.

• Bills payment. If you have a number of bills to settle every month (utility bills, insurance premiums, and credit card payments), you may want to enroll them through your bank’s online facilities. This saves you from having to write a number of checks every month. Some banks also offer due date reminders through e-mail to make sure your payments are always up to date.

• Fund transfer. This service helps you manage multiple accounts in a jiffy. With online banking, you can transfer funds from your savings account to your current account anytime. Some banks offer third party fund transfers. Once the enrolment of a third party account has been approved, you may transfer money to a friend or a business partner anytime.You may also allow your account to accept fund transfers from other accounts.

• Checkbook request. If you wish to have a traditional check book printed for you, just request it online and pick it up from your bank’s nearest branch.

• New accounts. Getting that new savings account to organize your finances better doesn’t have to be complicated. And it saves you the trouble of having to fill out another form.

• Stock trading. Some banks have online trading facilities to which you can link your savings or current accounts for automatic debits and credits.

• Call card PINs. This allows you to buy pre-paid call and internet cards on any day and at whatever hour.

To better enjoy the online tools your bank provides, it would do you well to have a fast Internet connection. Technically, a slower dial-up connection may already be enough, but when doing online transactions that involve your money, you would want to see results right away. Dropped connections may cause you to repeat the same transaction.

Many are now adopting online banking because of the convenience of having 24/7 access to their account and the time saved from not having to stand in long queues. Banks, for their part, want their clients to go online because it saves them time and money and allows them to serve clients beyond the banking hours.

Despite its obvious benefits, online banking has yet to enjoy a critical mass of adopters. Most of those embracing this banking technology are mid-level professionals in their 30s or early 40s who are techno savvy and are comfortable working online. Older people usually have traditional and complex banking needs and tend to shun online banking for fear of falling prey to fraud.

Yet, the older clients’ fears are not entirely unfounded as banking online requires that a client is familiar with current Internet technologies, such as browser controls and interfaces. Then there are those who take issue with virtual money, because they don’t trust the computer enough to handle financial transactions in their behalf. Globe Telecom’s G-Cash, and Smart Communications’ SmartMoney have staunchly been preaching to their subscribers about the rewards of banking online using their mobile phones.

As a way to allay their clients’ online security fears, banks have installed multiple layers of protection to ensure that the client’s every transaction is hacker-free. Clients may be prompted to answer several Personal Verification Questions aside from the usual username or password challenge. Usually, upon exiting the site, clients are given a summary of the transactions made during their last session. The time logs should match the time a client logged in to the system.

Banks also use the session timeout check after a period of inactivity. If you forget to log out and leave the computer for a long period, the system will automatically force your username to log out, preventing any unauthorized access to your account. Given all these benefits, it won’t hurt to give online banking a try. If you haven’t jumped onto the online bandwagon yet, now is your time to do so.

1. Keep your username, password, and machine generated PINs safe. Change your password regularly (some sites actually force you to do this) and avoid using the same password you have for other systems like e-mail and network membership account.
2. Remember to keep your Personal Verification Answers personal. Banks would never e-mail you the verification questions, so don’t reply to an email asking you about them.
3. Always look for the closed padlock icon usually found at the lower right hand corner of your browser when accessing your bank’s website. An open padlock means the site is not secure; do not continue with your transaction.
4. Remember to clear your browser’s cache occasionally. Consult your browser’s “help” file.
5. Never access your financial accounts in an Internet café.
6. Install anti-virus software in your computer. A key logger might be lying in wait to steal your password.
7. Upgrade your operating system.
8. Never reply to an e-mail asking for your username, password, or any other personal information. As well, do not click any link in an unsolicited e-mail, be it from your bank or not. When this happens, inform your bank right away.
9. Ask your bank’s customer representative about their privacy policy. When you suspect that fraud is in the offing, call your bank as soon as possible to prevent unauthorized access to your account.
10. Always log out after a successful transaction.