Fine-tune your digital finances to keep you financially fit

14 October 2014

Fine-tune your digital finances to keep you financially fit

Digital banking can help your financial fitness if used with care. Banking Ombudsman Deborah Battell says her top tips for getting financially fit in the digital banking age are:

1. Take advantage of your smartphone or tablet and download your bank’s app so you can check your balances and transactions regularly
2. Keep tabs on automatic payments and open emails from suppliers who bill you electronically so you know how much money will be coming out of your accounts
3. Check account transactions regularly to quickly pick up on mistaken payments or fraud
4. Read your bank e-statements – it can be easier to ignore these than statements in the mail
5. Make sure you enter payments information carefully – check, double check and read account numbers out loud before you confirm payments as it's easy to make a mistake. A good tip we’ve heard is to read the number backwards to check it’s right
6. If accessing your electronic banking through Wi-Fi, only use secure Wi-Fi, not free public Wi-Fi - the risks of being hacked are much higher
7. Consider setting up your credit card so it’s paid automatically - this could help you avoid potentially having to pay fees and interest penalties
8. Contact your bank as soon as you notice something amiss.

“Using your smart phone to do your banking enables you to set things up to suit your needs and because you are essentially carrying your bank around in your pocket or bag, you can instantly find out what’s going on.

“But if you are thinking about smart phone banking or do it already, check your approach is going to keep you financially fit rather than financially frail. We recommend taking precautions to ensure your personal information remains secure,” said Ms Battell.

1. Use your smart phone’s PIN lock function to keep other people out of your phone
2. Keep your app PINs and passwords unique and never disclose them to anyone
3. Only use your bank’s smart phone banking apps and ensure you have downloaded these from a trusted source like Apple App and Google Play
4. Keep your operating system and apps updated – updates often contain new security protections.
The Banking Ombudsman Scheme publishes web-based quick guides on a wide range of banking issues its sees people getting caught out on, and their purpose is to inform the New Zealand banking public before they encounter strife themselves.

“The Banking Ombudsman Scheme supports Money Week because the more people understand their finances, the better-prepared they can be for future challenges,” said Ms Battell.

ENDS

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