Bank of America is introducing a new alert service that will enable its 15 million Web banking customers to receive account information over their mobile handsets, PDAs or via e-mail.
BoA says the 18 new alerts are being introduced to help its Web banking customers detect suspicious activity and fraud. Customers can request alerts to be delivered to mobile devices or an e-mail address.
Notifications are sent immediately about changes in sensitive data such as passwords or customer information. These alerts are sent automatically, though customers can choose to turn them off.
Customers can set dollar limits to determine when they would be told about potentially suspicious activities on their debit or credit cards and can also choose to receive a daily e-mail about available account balances to help prevent fees.
"We're giving customers more ways to detect fraud and keep an eye on their accounts," says Sanjay Gupta, e-Commerce executive, BoA. "They can decide what they want to hear about and where they want to be told. This is another important step to help protect our customers online and give them greater peace of mind."
Last year BoA launched a two factor authentication service called SiteKey to its Internet banking customers in the US and also introduced an anti-phishing toolbar designed to help customers identify fraudulent Web sites.
In January the bank came out top in a survey of 28 US financial firms conducted by Javelin Strategy & Research that analysed consumer-facing online identity fraud prevention, detection and resolution capabilities.