Deposit Checks via Cell Phone

NCR is now allowing customers to deposit checks anywhere they get reception on their data-enabled mobile phones.

Assuming you don't already direct deposit all your checks, NCR's APTRA Passport checking software could be great news. Your phone's camera, which must be at least 2-megapixels, acts as a scanner that captures an image of the check. APTRA then uses Mitek Systems' advanced recognition and image quality technologies to validate all data before transmitting those images directly to your financial institution or online banking web site. Presto! You're done.

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PIN Number Scams / Malware

Instead of using mechanical means to steal from debit cardholders, some thieves are using malware to swipe huge numbers of encrypted and unencrypted PINs. It's not yet widespread, but it'll take serious work to prevent.

Basically, when you type your PIN into an ATM, the PIN is encrypted by the bank, only to be decrypted by your own bank, who (hopefully) approves the transaction. That leaves two ways for these thieves to get access to swathes of PINs. First, they can install malware to copy the PINs in the brief time they're decrypted, while they're sitting in a bank's memory cache waiting to be authorized. Banks typically rely on anti-virus software to catch this kind of attack, and resourceful hackers have taken advantage of this inattention. The second way involves a piece of software that tricks the bank's security software into providing the decryption key for the PINs.

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New Visa Card, Generates Random Security Codes

In response to popular concerns with online credit card fraud, Visa Europe has announced a newly designed credit card, complete with a keypad and digital number display, according to the Daily Mail. While the credit card is of the usual size and features a credit card number and magnetic strip for use with conventional card readers, it does not have a security code number in the traditional sense. Instead, cardholders will enter their PIN into the keypad, which will then generate a random number on the display. This random number will serve as the cardholder's one-time security code, which can then be entered to make online purchases.

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Manage Your Money Online - For Free

Having read a post about ClearCheckbook on www.makeuseof.com, I decided to check it out. After spending about 5 minutes on the site (after a simple and free sign up maybe 2 minutes), I realized this was exactly the application I have been looking for the past several months. The best part about the application is you control everything manually. You have complete control over the accounts (Cash, Checking, Savings, and Credit) you set up along with the expense categories to assign. Additionally, ClearCheckbook provides up to date reports to view trends or charts of how and when your money is used. You can set up automatic recurring reminders to pay your monthly bills. Not that I will need this feature, but you can work in non US currencies.

I had previously been using my own version of this application in an Excel spreadsheet. One of the best features of this website is that you can access the data from any internet connection.

Staying on top of your finances, especially your expenses can be a great advantage to your overall financial status. Knowing where your money is coming from and where it is going is very important. For anyone that does manage your checkbook or would like to start, I would recommend at least taking a look at ClearCheckbook.

Here are just a few ways ClearCheckbook can help you stay on top of your finances:

• Balancing - Ability to balance your checkbook from anywhere you have internet access.
• Reports - View based on your spending and what you're spending your money on.
• Mobile - Specially designed interface for your iPhone and iPod Touch. Manage your finances from anywhere you have a cellphone or wifi connection!
• Automation - Automatic recurring transactions and notices so you never forget to pay your bills.
• CheckBot 2.0 - Update your account from your cellphone SMS or AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo!, and Google Talk Messenger services.
• 100% Free! - That's right, ClearCheckbook doesn't cost a penny! It's completely free to use.