Online Security
Keeping your online financial and personal information secure and confidential remains one of our top priorities.
Encryption
The privacy of communications between you (your browser) and our Online Banking servers is ensured via encryption. Encryption scrambles messages exchanged between your browser and our Online Banking server.
Complex Password
It is important to verify that only authorized persons log into Online Banking. This is achieved by verifying your password. A strong password will help deter identity theft and safeguard your information. The longer and more complex the password, the more difficult it is to compromise. At a minimum, your Online Banking password must be
- Between 8 and 20 characters
- Contain at least one upper case letter
- Contain at least one lower case letter
- Contain at least one number
Never reveal your password to another person.
You play a crucial role in preventing others from logging on to your account. Never use easy-to-guess passwords. Additional suggestions for strengthening your password include:
- Avoid using words from a dictionary, common or clever misspelling of words, and foreign words.
- Avoid using incrementing passwords with a number.
- Avoid preceding or appending passwords with a number.
- Avoid using passwords that others can easily guess by looking at your desk (such as names of pets, sports teams and family members).
- Avoid using words from popular culture.
- Avoid thinking of passwords per se - think secret codes.
- Consider using passwords that require you to type with both hands on the keyboard.
- Change any preassigned or default passwords.
- Change your password periodically or anytime you think it may have been compromised. You can change your Online Banking password anytime through the User Options. You will be required to change your Online Banking password at least once every 180 days.
Account Lockout
We allow you to enter your password incorrectly a limited number of times; too many incorrect passwords will result in the locking of your Online Banking account until you call us to reinitalize your account or until you successfully answer your Forgotten Password questions. We monitor and record "bad-login" attempts to detect any suspicious actiivity (i.e. someone trying to guess your password).
Alternate ID
Your Social Security Number uniquely identifies you. You will be required to use an identifier other than your Social Security Number as your Customer Number.
You will need to create a Customer Number when you register for Online Banking. The Customer Number must be:
- Between 8 and 20 characters
- Contain at least one letter
- Contain at least one number
You may change your Customer Number at any time within User Options
Forgotten Password Reset
It can happen to any of us. We enter our password incorrectly and are locked out of Online Banking. Until now, your only option was to call the Bank and request to have your password reset. And if you were locked out during the evening or the weekend, you may have had to wait several hours or days before you could access Online Banking again.
With Forgotten Password Feature, this doesn't need to happen to you again. You will have the opportunity to select questions and provide the answers to the questions. Once these questions and answesr are on record, should you be locked out of Online Banking, you can supply the correct answer to the question, and be back into Online Banking, without contacting us.
You will be prompted to set up two Forgotten Password questions. This is an optional feature. If you opt out of it initially, you can always sign up later through User Options within Online Banking. You can change your questions and answers at anytime through User Options.
If you are ever locked out or have forgotten your password, select the Forgotten Password link on the sign on page. You will be asked to enter your Customer Number. After submitting this information, your questions will be displayed. Answer the questions correctly, and you will be allowed to change your password and access Online Banking.
Secure Architecture
The computers storing actual account information are not linked directly to the internet.
- Transactions initiated through the Internet are received by Online Banking web servers.
- These servers route your transaction through firewall servers.
- Firewall servers act as a traffic cop between segments of our Online Banking network used to store information, and the public Internet.
- This configuration isolates the publicly accessible Web servers from data stored on our Online Banking servers and ensures only authorized requests are processed.
Various access control mechanisms, including intrusion detection and anti-virus, monitor for and protect our systems from potential malicious activity. Additionally, our Online Banking servers are fault-tolerant, and provide for uninterruptible access, even in the event of various types of failures.
Enhanced Login Security
Sign up for our Enhanced Login Security, a free and easy way to help prevent fraud. Sign up once at your computer, set up your "challenge questions", and you're all set.(If you have already set up questions and answers for the Forgotten Password Feature, the same questions and answers will be used for Enhanced Login Security.) It's that simple—the next time you log in, it's business as usual. And the rest of your Online Banking experience will remain exactly the same.
This superior technology protects your accounts from unauthorized access. It identifies you as the true "owner" of your account by recognizing not only your password, but your computer as well. If we don't recognize your computer – you've logged in from a public computer or one you haven't used before, for example – we'll ask you your challenge questions as an additional line of defense to prevent unauthorized access. With Enhanced Login Security, you'll be protected from whatever computer you're using, whether at home or on the go.
Additional Online Banking Features
We provide a number of additional security features in Online Banking to help protect you:
- Timeout: This prevents curious persons form continuing your Online Banking session if you left your PC unattended without logging out. You may set the timeout period in Online Banking's User Options screen. We recommend that you always sign off (log out) when done banking online.
- Online Statement: Online Statements are facsimiles of traditional financial statements packaged and delivered to you securely within Online Banking. By eliminating your paper statement, you help stop thieves from stealing your information out of your mailbox.
- Check Images: View an exact facsimile of your check transactions online to help prevent fraud.
- Alerts: Check clear alerts, payment alerts, and balance alerts are financial tools we provide to help you to monitor your accounts more actively and to detect suspicious activity more easily.
