German retail bank Deutsche Postbank (Postbank) is implementing a new indexed transaction number system (iTAN) in a bid to prevent its Web banking customers from online phishing attacks.
In July both Deutsche Postbank and Deutsche Bank were reportedly targeted by fraudsters who used spam e-mail claiming to be from bank staff in an attempt to obtain customers' passwords and PIN numbers.
According to news reports, Postbank's online banking customers will now be required to use an iTAN number to complete transactions.
Customers were previously required to type in their PINs followed by a TAN number selected from a list sent by the bank via the post or mobile phones.
But with the new iTAN service, customers will be informed of an index number when banking online, which will direct them to the TAN they must use to complete a transaction.
As an additional precaution, Postbank customers can also set a limit on the amount of money that can be transferred from online accounts.