The Headache: Customers, employees, directors, examiners, auditors—everyone seems to be carrying wireless gadgets these days, from smartphones to iPads to Kindle Fires. And they all like internet "hot spots."
Our Question: Should banks provide free public wireless internet access in their lobbies and other facilities?
Come see what other bankers think, and add your own views
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Should your bank offer free public wireless access?
Not so long ago it was trendy for banks to offer internet terminals in their lobbies, along with gourment coffee service and perhaps a video screen tuned to a financial news channel. Computers and other gadgets have come a long way since, and nowadays people carrying wireless devices often have an eye open for a "hot spot" where they can access a wireless or "WiFi," signal.
Is this a good idea for banks? Is it doable? A banker recently asked "Pass the Aspirin" about the risks and rewards of providing public wireless in bank branches. He saw some plusses in this, but he also worried about risks to the bank.
Below is a sampling of what we've heard so far from community bankers. Add your own ideas and suggestions.
And if you would like to join our regular list of "prescribers," to whom we send questions, please email
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today.
Let's hear your views and ideas below! (Editorial Note: Contributions to Pass the Aspirin may also appear in our print edition. While we will ask for your e-mail address, this is only as an aid to verifying identity and will not be used for any marketing or promotional purpose. The e-mail address will not be published.)
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Jodie McCalla, assistant vice-president and director of product development, Ohio Valley Bank, $813 million-assets, Gallipolis, Ohio
said:
| Our Product Research Committee has reviewed the feasibility of offering public WiFi in our offices' lobbies and we have decided not to pursue this offering due to the security risks our customers may encounter. There are several free WiFi monitoring programs that hackers can obtain that would give them access to a customer's personal data and internet activities (i.e. credit card information, browsing history, keystrokes, etc.) while logged on to the free WiFi service. In addition, data transferred using public WiFi is typically unencrypted, which increases our customers' vulnerability for identity fraud and other risks to their non-public personal information. | |
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Chip Register, senior vice-president and chief information officer, The Fauquier Bank, $598.5 million-assets, Warrenton, Va.
said:
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We will be implementing wireless access at our bank's main office campus in 2012. When planning this, we carefully considered several elements as part of our due diligence: Who are the anticipated users? What are the desired objectives for providing wireless services? Will public as well as private access be provided? The responses drove the bank's implementation. Bank associates were identified as prime users of wireless. However, we also anticipate that our board of directors, regulators, auditors, and third-party partners will want to use wireless when they are on the premises. We intend to provide "public"--read "guest"-- access, secured to provide internet access while appropriately protecting the bank's network. However, we currently do not anticipate letting bank customers have wireless access in branches, nor will the bank market any branches as "hot spots." The value of providing bank customers a wireless access point is minimized by the rapidly growing adoption of smartphones, which are the principle mobile devices benefiting from wireless access. As these phones are accompanied by supporting data plans, we consider the bank would receive diminishing benefit in providing customer-centric wireless services with the additional infrastructure and support costs. One notable exception pertains to a bank which has adopted a "coffee shop environment" model for its branches whose customers would take advantage of the branch "hot spot." Even with the "private/guest" approach we've adopted, there are security concerns, but we consider these to be manageable. The risk can be properly managed and mitigated. |
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Steven Ward, information systems manager, Montgomery Bank, N.A., $883 million-assets, Sikeston, Mo.
said:
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(These comments and opinions are my own and do not necessarily represent those of Montgomery Bank.) Free WiFi can be a good idea for a bank, but it is not free nor cheap for the bank provider. The security required to ensure that the service is available, safe, and restricted to responsible use does have both upfront and ongoing costs. However, the payoff in customer service may be worth the expense required to set up and maintain such a system. My bank does not currently offer public WiFi. We do have WiFi available for auditors and third-party partners needing internet access for a presentation or to access a virtual private network back at their offices. The service is encrypted and requires a key and password access. Once connected, a user needs an additional user name and password to be authenticated to our web-filtering appliances. We offer this at our larger regional hub branches. Security, in regard to the bank's network, can be accomplished easily, by simply isolating the public WiFi from the core network infrastructure. The bank could purchase a business DSL or cable Internet service and start broadcasting from that. The cost is minimal. Banks that want to offer free public access need to ask tough questions. The real issue is what individuals will be doing on your "free internet." Branches are often near residential housing and fast food establishments, not to mention someone just sitting in the parking lot using your free Wi-Fi to engage in questionable or outright illegal activities. Before you jump, you have to ask: What is the bank's responsibility to prevent or prohibit illegal activity? Should you restrict or filter the websites? Will you need to implement measures to detect and prevent individuals from sampling or "sniffing" the traffic occurring on your free Wi-Fi? What about preventing someone from using up the majority of your free Wi-Fi's capacity as they play a game from the apartment complex behind the bank? I think the answer to all of these questions should be, yes. As a bank, we must consider that it is very likely that customers would use the our WiFi to conduct on-the-spot business transactions and communications. We are obligated to help protect them when they are in our facility. As an institution and responsible member of the communities we serve we should also do everything possible to ensure that our facilities and services are not used to conduct any illegal activity. |
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