Security
How do I know my money is safe?
Netscape SSL is a secured browser providing secure
communications. The browser sends a session key to Home
Federal that is encrypted using Home Federal's public key. This
session key will be used to encrypt this session's communication between
server and browser using a symmetric-key encryption algorithm.
Home Federal decrypts the session key with its private key.
Communication is now encrypted with the agreed upon session key.
There are firewalls located between the Internet and
our production network, and one protecting non-production networks.
There are also routing filters to prevent access to the
virtual vault.
Will Customer Service have access to my
account?
Customer Service will not be able to view your
online account in
order to assist you. Customer Service will be able to advise you how to make corrections but
cannot make changes themselves. There are problems Customer
Service can research for you, so errors can be corrected.
What if I forget my password? How do I
access my account?
If you have forgotten your password, notify Customer
Service. They will be able to reactivate your password
if you remember it but have gotten locked out, or
they are able to reissue a new password.
You can't access your account online without a password. However,
you may choose to temporarily use the 24 Hour Telephone Banking system, 308-381-1020,
for balance inquiries.
Can I e-mail questions about my account to
you? How secure is e-mail?
E-mail is not secure. However, most account
questions are fine to handle via e-mail as long as you don't send secure
information such as account numbers or Social Security numbers.
You may choose to send the last four digits of both of the numbers
instead of the complete number.
If I forget my password, will it take several
days to get one?
If you need a password for basic
Bank@Home, Customer Service can
issue you a new password right away. If you need a new password
for the bill pay portion of Bank@Home,
it could take up to 5 days.
What is the procedure for receiving a new
password?
You must contact Customer Service and tell them you
need a new password. Customer Service can
provide a new password immediately for basic
Bank@Home. For a bill
pay password, Customer Service will submit a request to have a new
password generated for you, and you will receive the new password in the
mail. The passwords provided by Customer Service are temporary, and the system will prompt you to change the password once you
have successfully logged in.
How often will my password change?
Passwords for
Bank@Home
no longer expire, but you can change them as often you like.
What if I want to change my password?
If you would like to change your password, just
go to the Change Password section and you will be able to change your
password.
Can anyone see my password?
No. You are the only one who should know your
password. No one else can see your password, and that is why if
you forget your password, a new password must be generated.
How do I know my money is safe?
Bank@Home
utilizes several layers of technology to ensure the confidentiality of
its transactions across the Internet. Security begins with
your browser. Secure Socket Layers (SSL) are
used to provide privacy for the data flowing between the browser and
Home Federal's server. SSL is an open protocol for securing data
communication across computer networks, and it provides a secure channel
for data transmission through its encryption capabilities.
Public/private key pairs are used specifically for
authentication. The public key can be distributed, using a
certificate that verifies the identity of the owner. The private
key is kept secret. A message encrypted by a public key can only
be read after decryption with the private key.
Bank@Home
is protected by a system of filtering routers and firewalls, which form
a barrier between the outside Internet and Home Federal's internal
network.
Customers have their own set of responsibilities in
providing security for their Bank@Home
account. Passwords must be kept secret. Users should make
sure that no one is physically watching as passwords are entered.
Users should also take precautions to keep computers clean and free from
viruses that could be used to capture password keystrokes.
Accessing your account is much more secure than many
other things you may do on a daily basis. If you write a check,
your account number is on the check, along with your name, address, bank
name, telephone number, and even your license number or Social Security
number.
What is my FDIC coverage?
Your accounts carry the normal levels of coverage.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is a governmental
agency, created in 1933, which provides a monetary guarantee of up to
$100,000.00 per depositor, per bank, subject to certain conditions.
What procedures are in place to prevent
hackers from accessing my account?
See answer to "How do I know my money is
safe?"
My password doesn't work. What do I do?
If you know your password, make sure to check your
CAPS LOCK key (it needs to be off). Passwords are case sensitive. Make sure
your Social Security number is entered correctly. If you are still
unable to get in, Customer Service may need to issue a new password.
Does a customer need to have their account
disabled before a new password can be generated?
No.
Which systems are used to ensure security?
SSL (Secure Sockets Layer), Firewalls, Passwords,
Certificates, Encryption, Virtual Vault, and continual audits.
Account
Access
Will I be able to print account
history, transfers,
etc.?
Yes. You may print your
statements in one of three ways:
Will I be able to create,
view and/or print reports?
No, just account history. You
can, however, export the information to Excel, Quicken, or Microsoft
Money. We recommend exporting information on a monthly basis if
you will need it for year-end income tax purposes.
Is there a limit to how many months of
transactions can be viewed?
Yes. History begins the day
you open your Home Federal account, but online access is limited to the
last 45 business days. Therefore, you can only pull information
back to that date.
When I use an ATM, will my account be adjusted
at the same time?
Yes. Your account balance in
Bank@Home is "real time".
Transactions that hit your account during business hours will be
reflected in the balance right away. Items that hit your account
during off business hours, holidays and weekends may not show in the
statement history until the next business day.
I have three accounts, but only two accounts
appear in Bank@Home. Why?
Customer Service will need to check the code on your
accounts to verify which ones are Internet enabled. If you notice
this problem, contact Customer Service.
What if I don't want all of my beneficiaries
to have account access?
Customer Service is able to control who has Internet
access on certain accounts by setting parameters to restrict beneficiary
ownership.
How can I make my loan payment over the
Internet?
If both the loan account and deposit account are
available on Bank@Home,
you would be able to use the transfer funds function. You could
also set up a repeating
payment/transfer
by using this transfer function. If one of the
accounts is at a different bank, you could set up a
repeating payment through the bill pay option. Home Federal does, however,
recommend that you use the Transfer Management System for automatic
withdrawal of these payments.
What is a category and why should I use them?
Categories are used in the bill pay
section and help to organize transactions. This allows the account
holder to keep track of their spending habits by categorizing account
activity.
I made a withdrawal at an ATM that posted to
the host, but the Bank@Home balances do not
reflect the activity right away. Why?
This is an indication that the connectivity between
the host and Bank@Home was
down, so the balance that is returned from Bank@Home
will be the last balance that was received from the host. Once
that connectivity is restored, the balances will reflect the activity.
Bill Pay
How does online bill pay work?
Online bill payments are processed by a
company called CheckFree. They process these transactions one of
three ways. The first
is called "Electronic". That is where an electronic credit is made
to the payee's bank account. The second is called "Electronic to Check".
That is where a CheckFree paper check is sent
to the payee. The third is called a Laser
Draft. That is where a paper check (which looks like your own
personal check) is sent the payee.
The use of the first two methods allows you the
flexibility of making electronic payments to vendors, whether or not
they are set up to receive purely electronic payments. This way,
whether it's a check for your gas bill, or a birthday check to your
nephew, the transaction can be processed electronically. And,
since the funds are removed from your account at the time of sending of
the check, the check is guaranteed. It's like paying your bills
with a cashier's check. With a laser draft, the
payment is still guaranteed to arrive at the payee on the scheduled due
date, but the funds are not withdrawn from your account until the payee
cashes the check.
Is there a limit to the number of
payments I can
make per month?
There is no limit on the number of
online bill payments you make. Please see our Fees and
Service Charges.
Is there a dollar limit on bill pays?
No. However, if your account
balance is not sufficient to cover the payment amount, your payment is
still processed and your account is assessed an overdraft fee.
If there aren't sufficient funds to cover
an automatic bill pay, does it try again the next day?
See previous question. Please
note that merchants typically try to process the payment two times.
Therefore, your account may incur overdraft charges twice before it is
returned.
If the automatic payment
that was returned for insufficient funds is scheduled to be processed
monthly, will it resume on the next scheduled date?
Yes.
Will the total number of payments I've
scheduled still decrease by one, or will I have to edit the number of
scheduled payments?
The number of automatic payments you've scheduled will
decrease by one with each monthly payment unless you
change the repeated payment information.
Can I change my mind after an automatic
payment is sent? Can you stop it?
If a payment is in either "In
Process" or "Processed" status, you cannot stop it or make any changes
to it. If, however, the payment is in "Scheduled" status, you are
able to stop and/or change the payment. If you want to, you may
request a Stop Payment, but there will be a small charge for this.
Please see our Fees and Service Charges for
current prices.
When are the checks mailed out to my bill pay?
Payments are processed by CheckFree
four (4) days prior to the scheduled due date, and CheckFree guarantees
that the payment will reach the payee on the scheduled due date.
Keep in mind, however, that some times the mail may take longer or the
electronic batch of payments is not processed by the payee upon receipt
of the payment. Therefore, please enter a payment a few extra days
before the statement due date.
Can I enter a payment to be paid
the same day I enter it?
No. The default is set to a
minimum of four (4) days out. CheckFree guarantees that the
payment will reach the payee on the scheduled due date, but they require
a four-day lead time. If your account is assessed late fees
because your payment was not applied to your account by the due date and
you entered the payment in time for the due date, CheckFree will work
with the payee to get the late fees waived. Again, please remember
to allow a few extra days before the statement due date.
Are payments processed daily?
Online bill payments are processed
Monday through Friday, but not on holidays, Saturdays or Sundays.
If want to stop an automatic payment, but have
forgotten my password, can Customer Service stop the payment for me?
If this should happen, call Customer Service.
They will be able to send a stop payment request to CheckFree.
Are scheduled payments shared between joint
accounts?
Yes, both users will see each other's pending
payments.
Who can I pay with Bill Pay?
Anyone, anywhere in the U.S. at any time. Funds
can only be sent and received in U.S. dollars to an institution or
merchant with a U.S. Zip Code, including Puerto Rico and Guam.
Funds cannot be sent to pay U.S. taxes or Court Orders.
What is the difference between semi-monthly
payments and bi-weekly?
Bi-weekly affects the account every other week.
This might mean that an account will be affected more than twice a
month. Semi-monthly affects the account only twice a month.
The payment frequency is paired 15 days apart. Example:
If a bill's first payment is on the first, the next triggered date would
be the 16th. Any date which is not a business day (i.e., Saturday,
Sunday or Holiday) rolls to the previous business day.
Internet
Problems
I couldn't access your home page. I put
your URL into "open location" and Netscape said, "The
requested location does not have DNS entry. Check with . . ."
Why?
Domain name servers match the letters we type with
numeric addresses (IP address) on the network. Some servers will
be missing entries at given times. Call your provider if the
problem persists.
What if I can't access your web page?
There may be a variety of factors that affect the
ability to connect to a secure site.
Bank@Home
requires a minimum browser version of 5.5 and 128 bit
encryption. If your
browser is less than 5.5, for security reasons, it's time for you to
upgrade your browser. Your browser also needs to "Accept All
Cookies" in order to access Bank@Home. Contact your Internet Service Provider for
directions and settings.
Another possible problem
might be heavy network traffic. If that is the case, you just need
to wait a while and try back at another time. Otherwise, you might
be accessing the Internet through a firewall. In that case it
might not let you into another secure site, which sits behind another
firewall. If this problem consists with other web pages as well,
you may want to contact your internet provider.
If you have any other questions,
contact
us
Otherwise, if you're looking to make your life easier,
apply now for Bank@Home.
