Bank Launches Anti-Scam Effort

***
08-Aug-2005

German banking giant Postbank offers its customers a new security service.

***

The German bank Postbank has announced the launch of a scheme designed to interrupt the operations of phishers and their attempts to capture sensitive financial information.

The bank will be the first German bank to use iTANs, a system which offers indexed transaction numbers which the bank hopes will foil the phishers.

The bank previously employed a system whereby Postbank customers who wished to transfer money between their accounts were required to type their PIN number followed by a transaction number TAN provided by the bank. The old system remains a German online banking convention.

The new system produces a unique TAN - the iTAN which issues a TAN which can only be used at that very instant, making the possibility of later transaction requests zero. The bank is also allowing its online banks the possibility to set monthly withdrawal limits which it hopes will decrease the likelihood of large-scale phishing efforts.

Other European banks have expressed interest in similar systems to Postbank's new iTAN service in the past.

Talk about this article on our phishing news discussion forum

---

PRESS/MEDIA ENQUIRIES

MillerSmiles is the web's dedicated anti-phishing service. Launched in 2003, the site has become one of the most trusted internet security related websites on the internet.

For enquiries relating to this story or any other part of the MillerSmiles website please email the MillerSmiles team here

If you are interested in business and partnership opportunities with MillerSmiles please email us here