Your source for the latest technology information of interest to community banks across America.
Subscribe to our monthly newsletter and stay on top of the latest technology trends in Hardware, Software, ATMs, Biometrics, Wireless, Online Banking, Marketing, Security, Internet Access and Call Centers.
Lenovo Launches Full Windows 10 Laptops That Are Cheaper than Some Chromebooks
Lenovo's new line of laptops feature the IdeaPad 330, 330S, and 530S, all of which will come equipped with the full version of Windows 10. The IdeaPad 330S is a slimmer, more expensive version of the 330, priced at $449.99. The units feature a thin, partially-aluminium casing and "Rapid Charge" battery. The priciest model is the 530S which comes with a higher-quality screen display.
Black Box Debuts New Secure KVM Switches
Black Box Corporation says that they now offer a comprehensive line of Secure KVM Switches that safeguard against accidental transfer, unauthorized access or compromise of critical data. Their KVM switches comply with PSS PP v3.0 (Protection Profile for Peripheral Sharing Switch, Version 3.0) and are being certified by the National Information Assurance Partnership (NIAP), making them suitable for use in banking environments with cyber-security concerns. They are also TAA compliant and made in the U.S.
~~~
Microsoft's 4 Step Plan for Getting Rid of Passwords Forever
Microsoft first made a move to reduce password use with Windows Hello, introduced in Windows 10, which uses biometric sensors to verify a user's identity based on a fingerprint or face scan. It has since introduced the Authenticator app, which allows users to log into their Microsoft account on their desktop using their phone. Finally, Microsoft is working with the Fast Identity Online (FIDO) working group to update Windows Hello with physical FIDO2 security keys that allow for more secure authentication.
How Artificial Intelligence Is Reshaping Jobs in Banking
Some observers have suggested that only the boring parts of jobs, drudgery like data entry and filling out forms, will disappear with the advent of AI so that humans will be able to focus on more interesting tasks, and that no actual jobs will be lost. But Autonomous Research also issued a report last week that estimated that in the U.S. alone, 2.5 million financial services employees will be “exposed” to AI technologies in the front, middle and back office — 1.2 million working in banking and lending. In banking, 70% of front-office jobs will be dislocated by AI, the researchers say: 485,000 tellers, 219,000 service representatives, and 174,000 loan interviewers and clerks. They will be replaced by chatbots, voice assistants and automated authentication and biometric technology.
~~~
Why Is Cash Still so Popular, Even Though Card Payments Are Rising?
According to a recent report from the Bank of International Settlements (BIS), demand for physical currency continues unabated, and few societies are anywhere close to a cashless, or even ‘less-cash’, society. This article looks at the many factors enabling and supporting this trend of cash remaining in favor, despite the growth of cards, mobile and other payment channels.
~~~
APT Attacks on Mobile Rapidly Emerging
Two specific organizations, NSO Group and Dark Caracal, are carrying out ongoing campaigns for data gathering on mobile devices. Some analysts contend that AV vendors have much less time to learn from the mobile attackers and build defenses than they did in the dawn of the PC APT (advanced persistent threat) wars.
~~~
Blue Cedar Launches New Tool for Security Policy Management
Blue Cedar announced the addition of a new dynamic policy capability to its flagship Enterprise product that allows organizations to automatically secure mobile apps and deploy fine-grained policy controls without altering the app in any way—and with no additional development work or coding required. Blue Cedar enables IT teams to regulate access control based on dynamically configurable rules, rather than having to resort to less intelligent “allow” or “block” controls. For example, in an environment with multiple apps that must run securely, teams can configure rules that first warn users to upgrade the OS or install security patches before a certain deadline and then block access after the deadline passes.
With Synthetic ID Fraud Losses Soaring, Complications Beset a Search for Solutions
The losses from so-called synthetic identity fraud are mounting fast. Card issuers alone sustained $820 million in synthetic ID fraud in 2017, up fully 41% in just two years, according to a new report from Aite Group. On current trends, the firm projects these losses will swell to more than $1.2 billion by the end of 2020. Using pilfered information, criminals can mix and match bits of data to invent personas that can then apply for credit lines and take out cash that will never be repaid. And once these personas become files at the three major U.S. credit bureaus, it’s very difficult to root them out.
~~~
6 Social Media Trends That Will Dominate Summer 2018 Marketing
The author covers some upcoming social media trends: 1) Event Tie-Ins; 2) Local Trends; 3) Strong Images; 4) GIFs and Emojis; 5) Social Causes; and 6) Lightheartness.
~~~
Online Banking/E-Commerce/Website Design
St Louis Fed Research Calls for Central Bank Electronic Money
Central bank cryptocurrencies are a bad idea but central bank electronic money could have big benefits, improving financial stability, simplifying monetary policy and reducing the reliance on cash, say researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis. The possibility of a so-called FedCoin has reared its head again in recent days, with Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor, arguing that it "would be a pretty effective way when the next crisis happens for us to maybe conduct monetary policy".
Microsoft Pay Comes to Outlook
Microsoft Pay — Microsoft’s answer to Android Pay and Apple Pay that was originally launched in 2016 as Microsoft Wallet — is getting a little more useful as it gains Outlook integration. This means that, for the first time, when a company sends you an invoice in an email, and you are using Outlook to read it, you can pay that bill directly, without needing to leave Outlook and open a different app or service. Instead, a panel that will open to the right of the main one by way of Microsoft’s Adaptive Cards.
~~~
How Do You Secure the Cloud? New Data Points a Way
New reports show big differences in risk among public, private, and hybrid cloud deployments. This article looks at the tools, information, and organizational structure needed to execute a successful cloud security strategy.
Even without a mega DDoS service, it's still inexpensive to wage a DDoS campaign. According to Symantec, DDoS bot software starts as low as a dollar to $15, and less than one-hour of a DDoS via a service can go from $5 to $20; a longer attack (more than 24 hours) against a more protected target, costs anywhere from $10 to $100.
VMware and VeloCloud Announce Their Networking and Security Strategy
VMware's Virtual Cloud Network provides a connectivity layer to connect everything — users, “things,” branch offices, public cloud infrastructure, private cloud infrastructure, public networking infrastructure, private networking infrastructure — all together in one consistent framework. The consistency comes from abstracting the networking away from the hardware. Instead, the networking services live in software, and they live in the cloud in a virtualization layer. VeloCloud extends that across the network to the branch offices and the cloud, supporting traditional applications as well as modern applications
~~~
Rethinking Traditional Contact Center Quality Monitoring
The idea that you should "inspect what you expect" is still very accurate. Since in many contact centers, voice is still the predominant channel, this article focuses on the phone, and provides a few reasons why it's time to reconsider traditional call quality monitoring.
~~~
