Online Banking preference.

[David Paste]

Hello,

I currently do my online banking via a web browser on Windows 10.

I have no desire to have an online banking app on my mobile phone.

With the upcoming Windows 11 "upgrade" I have been thinking of moving to Linux. I'm not really bothered about continuing with Windows as it turns out all my software is open source and available on Linux.

I have an iPad which doesn't leave the house.

Which platform is likely to be the most secure for online banking, Windows

10, Linux (probaly Ubuntu), or an iPad (with the latest OS and security updates, etc.)?

Thank you in advance for any advice.

[Andy Burns]

Win10 has 3½ years life left yet ...

[lacksey]

MUCH safer on a modern smartphone with fingerprint or facial recognition.

The ipad if it can do fingerprint or facial recognition.

Or the cheapest iphone that is still new old stock if the ipad can't do fingerprint or facial recognition.

Much more convenient with stuff that sends an SMS with a login confirmation number too. That ends up in the cut and paste area auto so you don't have to type it in when it arrives.

[Andy Burns]

None of my android banking apps rely on SMS messages for confirmation, the question

"is it you trying to spend £xx at GIMPMASKSONLINE?"

comes straight into the banking app for confirmation.

From the way that iPhones apparently couldn't run a covid app constantly in the background (before the combined apple/google framework) maybe banking apps on iPhones can't do that?

[Chris Green]

But isn't there always an alternative way to log in, i.e. a PIN or some such? If not then what happens if you damage your finger one day?

I manage that with a VOIP number that starts 07 and forwards all SMS messages to my E-Mail, then it's just a copy and paste on my computer.

[Tim Streater]

Much less secure, I'd have said, eh Rodney? Besides which the fingerprint shit doesn't work very well. And the pissy little screen on a smartphone isn't really useable for anything serious.

[Max Demian]

Not clear why I would need to do online banking while out and about. Maybe needed by the homeless. Phones can be lost/broken/stolen/lose charge/credit. And I would need to secure it.

[Theo]

Ubuntu or iPad, assuming you keep the automatic security updates on and don't run them past their EOL dates.

Windows isn't bad these days, but there's more malware about for it.

Fingerprint/face ID on iOS is useful as it means you can set a longer password as you have to enter it less often. Although there's slightly more risk if you carry your device around (some mugger could make you login at knifepoint).

i(Pad)OS is fairly locked down, on Ubuntu there's less of a risk of Windows malware. Use a mainline browser (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, etc) not one maintained by one guy in Nebraska (eg all the forks of old versions of Firefox). Be conservative about what software you install (a lot of mobile apps could be done equally well with a website).

Perhaps install a second browser for your banking from the one you use for day to day surfing. Run an adblocker on your primary browser.

Theo

[lacksey]

Andy Burns [e-mail] wrote

That bit wasn't about banking apps.

Yes it can and does it fine.

[Andy Burns]

So what was the issue about iphones shutting down the NHS-X covid app after 15 minutes idle then?

[lacksey]

Yes, but that can be some monster PIN that is a pain in the arse to enter which is only used if you get your finger chopped off or something like that.

You can register more than one finger.

Sure, if both hands hand are chopped off, you might have a problem, but you would have a problem with using a touch screen too. Ditto with facial recognition if you have your head chopped off.

Much more convenient to have the SMS number automatically pasted into the field on the screen, you do nothing but watch it happen.

[lacksey]

More fool you given that no one can use the phone if it gets lost or stolen or just mislaid for a while. And very easy to work out where it has gone too.

Works brilliantly on iphones. Vastly more convenient than passwords.

More mindless bullshit with net banking where all you have to do is select the recipient and enter the dollar value and can even do that with voice input if you want.

And you can do it anywhere if you find you need to move funds between your accounts or cards etc when out and can't pay for something due to insufficient funds in a particular card or account.

And even get real radical and just wave the phone at the terminal when paying for anything, even a brand new car, and vastly more secure than with a contactless card or card inserted into the terminal or using cash.

[RJH]

FWIW, I have a phone with facial recognition, which is needed to unlock the phone. I open the banking app with a 6 character pass key as a sort of 'double lock'.

I do pretty much all banking, and most payments, on the phone. Nationwide - I find the app and web interface pretty good.

[lacksey]

When you discover that a particular card or account hasn't got enough funds in it and need to move some money around. Or get real radical and pay for anything including a brand new car by just waving the phone at the terminal. Or show up at a garage/care boot sale and find that the seller hasn't got change for your transaction and can pay any mobile number using your net banking.

Or anyone who prefers the convenience.

But no one can use it in that situation.

Just as true with any mobile phone.

Only dinosaurs don't have one for that reason.

[lacksey]

The mugger can make you use an ATM. And it isn't hard to tell the mugger that you don't have net banking on your phone and hide it so he can't make you prove it.

[lacksey]

iphones didnt leave bluetooth running full time forever when no app was using bluetooth, so another phone could see another phone close enough so that it might be possible to get infected if the person with the other phone was infacted.

That was fixed very quickly with an iOS release.

[Dave Plowman (News]

Once you have access to the device, I'd say it's the bank's software which is more important.

[lacksey]

No point in doing that because all the decent banking apps do a fresh ID check when you use the app and that times out too.

I do too. A couple of my banks do have a function or two which can only be done in a browser, not their phone app, but that is a pretty uncommonly used function. So uncommonly used that I can't even remember what it is now off the top of my head.

I do all payments using applepay except garage/car boot sale transactions. I can pay to any mobile phone number but with a queue paying for stuff at a garage/car boot sale, it isn't worth convincing the seller that its as good as cash unless they don't have the change. Even if they don't have the change, there are always mates of mine there and we find the change that way and pay each other back using our phones.

I have dozens of banks I use and all have very decent apps and web interaces. Just one still won't do instant transfers.

[Richard]

Rod (aka this shit lacksey) has idea about the NHS app as he's a dunny dweller from down under.

[Richard]

What? A bank for each of your shitty nyms? Fuck off rod.