First National Banking Company

You can feel confident that your sensitive account information is secure when you use our Internet banking system. Below, we have a list of Frequently Asked Questions about the security of Internet banking.

Introduction

Security on Your Side

Security on Our Side

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Introduction

Q: I am considering opening an account with Internet access. What type of security do you offer?

A: As one of the first major service bureaus to offer Internet banking, security experts at the FundsXpress Financial Network, which provides Internet banking for this institution, anticipated the concerns of customers like you. From the ground up, we built a security system that safeguards your money and keeps your account information private.

The result is a network of "distributed security," one that ensures protection throughout the banking process -- on your computer, during the transmission of information, and in your financial institution's own computer systems.

Distributed security means that, rather than rely on one security measure, the FundsXpress Financial Network utilizes many lines of defense -- including authentication, encryption, and automatic sign-off to protect your account information. So whether you're enrolling online for Internet banking, transferring money or paying your bills, you can depend on your account information being safe.

Q: What is encryption?

A: Turning meaningful words and numbers into coded language -- that is, encryption -- has been in use since pharaohs ruled over Egypt some 4000 years ago, and banks have been utilizing encryption for more than a century. In the Wild West, banks conducted many of their financial activities via telegraph, so they regularly used coded messages.

For instance, a simple phrase like, "We will pay $1,000 silver tomorrow," was relayed over telegraph lines as confusing jumble like, "Petrify Ambition Distaff Thorny."

Of course, your online banking session is encrypted using much more powerful forms of encryption than were available 100 years ago. However, the essence remains the same: your account information will read as gibberish to all but you and your financial institution.

Encryption in cyberspace

All of your Internet banking sessions through the FundsXpress Financial Network are encrypted. That means your password, as well as all information relating to you and your accounts, employ the strongest forms of cryptography that are commercially available for use over the Internet.

If for any reason your secure session ends, your online banking session automatically terminates.

Q: How does encryption work?

A: Everything that travels through cyberspace during your online banking session, from your password to your instructions to pay a bill, becomes a string of unrecognizable numbers before entering the Internet. Both the computers at the FundsXpress Financial Network and the browser you use to surf the Web understand the mathematical formulas that turn your banking session from meaningful information to numeric code and back again.

While the Internet banking system and your computer can easily translate this code back to meaningful language, this process would be a daunting, almost impossible task for unauthorized intruders. That's because there are billions of possible keys that could potentially solve each formula -- but only one that will work. Each time you begin an online banking session, your computer and the Internet banking system agree on a random number that serves as the key for the rest of the conversation. What that random number could be depends largely on the strength of encryption your browser utilizes.

Security on Your Side

Q: What security measures are taken to prevent sensitive information from being intercepted online?

A: From the moment account information leaves your computer to the time it enters the Internet banking system, we take numerous steps to keep your information secure in cyberspace. First, we make sure only authorized people with secure browsers can access our system.

You must enter your password, and we must verify it, before you are allowed to access your accounts.
Only browsers supporting the SSL security protocol can be used to log on to our system.
Once online, we make sure only you can view any information about your accounts.
SSL uses a digital signature to make sure that no one can send you false information: your browser will only accept information from the Internet banking system.
SSL also uses the highest level of encryption supported by your browser to encrypt all information before it is sent. This ensures that only the browser that logged on can receive any information that the system supplies.

Q: What can I do to protect my account information while I'm banking online?

A: This institution and the FundsXpress Financial Network take numerous steps to keep your account information secure, but you are responsible for securing your financial information while it is in your computer.

Here's what you can do:

Choose a good password: Your online password, along with your access number, authenticate you when you begin an Internet banking session. You should carefully select a password that is hard to guess. Never use a word that can be found in the dictionary.
Keep your password safe: Even the best password is worthless if it's written on a note attached to your computer or an entry in your checkbook. Memorize your password. Also, never tell anyone your password. Staff at the FundsXpress Financial Network or at your financial institution will never ask you for your password; they do not need it to help you.
Change your password regularly: It's important to change your password regularly, which you can easily do when you begin an Internet banking session. Every time you choose a new password, the Internet banking system runs a quick program to test it. If we can guess it, we immediately ask you to choose another one.
Remember to sign off: You may not always be at your own computer when you bank online. Therefore, it's important to sign off when you're finished banking. If you forget to do so, the system automatically signs you off after 10 minutes of inactivity. This will prevent anyone else from accessing your account.

What's the difference between domestic-grade encryption and international-grade encryption?

Domestic-grade encryption provides more powerful encoding than international-grade encryption by a power of 88 (that's 2⁸⁸).

40-bit encryption means there are 2⁴⁰ possible keys that could fit into the lock that holds your account information but only one that works for each Internet banking session. There are billions of possible keys that could potentially get to your account information -- but only one that works each time you bank over the Internet.

128-bit encryption means there are 2¹²⁸ (try it on your calculator) possible keys that could fit into the lock that holds your account information, but only one that works for each Internet banking session. This level of encryption is so powerful that the U.S. government lists this encryption as a federal munitions which means browsers that offer it can only be used by citizens and permanent residents of the United States and citizens of Canada, and it can only be downloaded to locations in the United States or Canada.

Q: How do I know if my banking session is encrypted?

A: You can determine if you are in a secure session by looking for the following icons in the status bar of your respective browser:

Browser	Secure	Unsecure
Netscape Navigator 1.1X or later*
Netscape Communicator 4.0*
Microsoft Internet Explorer (any version)*		No icon

* Different web browsers display these icons in different areas of their windows. All browsers offer information on the level of security they provide.

The FundsXpress Financial Network ensures that all online banking sessions via the Internet are encrypted. If for any reason your secure session ends, your online banking session terminates.

Q: What type of encryption do I need?

A: We encourage you to use 128-bit encryption if possible (also called "domestic" or "U.S." grade encryption)- though if you travel overseas you may want 40-bit access as well. The system will inform you when you log in whether you are using a 40-bit browser or not.

We can help you determine whether your browser is secure enough for online banking, and we can help you download a browser with the encryption you need.

Q: What capabilities does my browser need to allow me to use Internet Banking?

A: Your browser must support SSL (Secure Socket Layer) protocol. Most popular browsers support this security feature. We require this to maintain our high security level.

Q: Can I use a browser not on your list for Internet banking?

A: The FundsXpress Financial Network tests new releases of the leading browsers to ensure they operate appropriately in regard to functionality and security. For links to popular browsers, check the bottom of our demo page.

However, you may use other browsers, as long as they are SSL compliant. You should be aware that they may not be as secure as the ones we recommend. In addition, if you use a beta browser you should know that updates may accidentally change its security functions. Unless specific problems are noted in Betas, we do not disable them, but bugs may be present. We encourage you to use stable, well-tested versions of browsers.

Security on Our Side

Q: What are you doing in regard to security that no one else is?

A: The FundsXpress Financial Network's security standards are among the most stringent of any company on the Internet. No logins are allowed to our machines on the Internet without authenticated, encrypted connections. Our banking server sits on a physically secure network. Our security team constantly monitors attempts to break into our security system to make sure your account information is safe and secure.

The FundsXpress Financial Network collaborates closely with software manufacturers, like Netscape and Microsoft, when they introduce new browsers to surf the Web. These browsers are tested to see if they meet our security requirements, then we offer feedback to the software developers. Our standards are high, and if a browser isn't secure enough for Internet banking, we won't recommend it to be used to conduct banking sessions.

Likewise, we keep abreast of and implement relevant technology developments, whether it is an improved form of encryption or a better method for monitoring unauthorized intrusion.

Constant Surveillance

The FundsXpress Financial Network security team constantly monitors attempts to break into our security systems to make sure that your accounts are safe and secure. We retain the right to make and keep logs of all activity in our system. However, we would only do this in order to trace a problem or in case of a suspected security breach.

Privacy Statement

We know we are dealing with sensitive information and want to reassure you that we take every step possible to ensure your privacy.

Password: Your password is extremely private and secure. Once you have selected your password through the enrollment process, no one else will know it. This includes the associates of First National Banking Company and FundsXpress Financial Network. We do not know your password, and we do not need to know it. No one from First National Banking Company or FundsXpress will ever ask you for it.
To further protect your account when you bank online, you should:
- Always memorize your password.
- Never write it down.
- Never reveal it to anyone.
- Change your password often (easily done when you begin an Internet banking session).

Cookies: A cookie is a piece of data given to a browser by a web server, so that the browser will hand it back to the server on subsequent visits.
Internet banking uses a cookie when you log on. This lets us give you access to your accounts without making you enter your password more than once per session. The cookie changes each time you log on, so it is useless once you have logged off. No one can use it to access your account.
Cookies do not read your hard drive and ours will not supply us with any new information about you.
Sharing Information: We will only share information about you and your accounts when necessary. We will never sell any information about you. Some cases where we will share information include:
- When we are ordered to do so by a subpoena or court order.
- When we must do so in order to provide a service or complete a transaction you have requested.
- In order to investigate fraud or abuse of our system.
- In order to monitor the system's performance.
Session Traces: We retain the right to make and keep logs of all activity in our system. However, we would only do this in order to trace a problem or in case of a suspected security breach. We will not share this information.