Text 12241, 117 rader
Skriven 2010-11-17 16:20:02 av Robert Bashe (2:2448/44)
  Kommentar till text 12220 av Björn Felten (2:203/2)
Ärende: Unbelieveable stories
=============================
Björn Felten wrote to Robert Bashe on Wednesday November 17 2010 at 10:58:

RB>> What TV box? That's not "standard" in Germany either.

BF> You mean you get all the movie channels and similar for free? Lucky
BF> you!

You forgot the smiley.

RB>> Swedes may really be smarter than Germans - or you spent a lot of
RB>> time "educating".

BF> Probably the latter if you guys don't even know how to use a simple
BF> security box like ours.

Maybe we just have an older population that is more conservative and didn't
grow up with computers. I think you might be surprised to talk to my wife and
most of her friends.

BF> Maybe it's just US born Germans that don't know how to handle a simple
BF> TAN box? :)

Wishful thinking...

RB>> ;-) That's Sweden. The only thing I get free from my bank - and
RB>> that's not even the case at _all_ banks - is a TAN (transaction
RB>> number) generator worth maybe EUR 5 wholesale.

BF> And that's exactly what I am talking about. What do you think I was
BF> referring to?

From the description, that's _not_ what you are talking about - yours appears
to be a good deal more complex. Mine is a litle thing that looks like a pocket
calculator, but smaller. You insert the keyed bank card (only one account card
is keyed to work), press "TAN", then enter a code and then a second string of
numbers (both of which - six to nine-digit numbers - are copied from the
display and thus frequently contain errors), and the thing spits out a one-time
transaction number. The device isn't hooked up to the computer - you have to
enter the TAN manually (although there are apparently ones that you can buy and
that scan the numbers from the display, but my bank doesn't ofer this service
or the electronic device for it).

As aleady mentioned, not all banks offer this (it's called a "TAN
Plus"generator), and most charge you for it. The most common method is still a
TAN list you get from the bank, often what they call an iTAN (indexed TAN),
where you have to enter the TAN with a specific number on the list. Another
common method is the mTAN (mobile TAN), where you have a cellphone and the TAN
is sent as an SMS to the phone (and becomes invalid after a minute or so, for
the sake of security). The problem with the later is that the TAN is sent to a
specific cellphone number and if you change numbers you have to remember to
inform the bank or someone else may get your TANs. I personally don't like the
system since the TANs are transmitted by radio and thus can theoretically be
intercepted. But most people think this is very secure.

Now, all this is real great and certainly more secure than what Ameican banks
offer - but it's nothing for an old Granny whose grandson is not named Felten
;-) Joe Blokes (or Johann Mueller, as you like) goes to the bank and lets the
tellers figure out what to do.

BF>>> Unfortunately to our US friends it does very much so. I happen to
BF>>> know, since I've been developing interface programs for banking
BF>>> systems for many years.

RB>> Which means zilch as far as your above statement is concerned. You
RB>> simply assume the worst.

BF> Not at all. I just (five minutes ago) tested my modem connection to
BF> Chase Manhattan and connected without problems.

Modem to Internet with normal login? No problem, but what's the point except
for the slow transmission?

BF> Fifteen to ten years ago, when a business wanted to get their credit
BF> card transactions sent to their bank, the used -- hold on to your hat
BF> now -- a modem connecting to a Procomm in BBS mode to login, and then
BF> send their daily transactions the same way a user makes a comment!
BF> This is *still* the case in the US, I kid you not.

No idea, as I've never run a business in the States. Nor have you, unless I
miss my guess.

RB>> Oh, of _course_ not... that's all in my mind, isn't it?

BF> Correct.

Well, nobody can ever claim you suffer from a lack of self confidence anyway.

RB>> Again, such problems are not limited to the USA, and as far as
RB>> "greedy" is concerned,

BF> No it's not, you are correct. But the US bankers are preventing the
BF> rest of the world to move forward because so much of the world economy
BF> is still dollar related.

Would you prefer Renminbi? I don't know that would be much of an improvement.
But at any rate, I also think it's time for a Breton Woods II - in fact this is
long overdue. Hey, how about pegging world currencies to gold? I can hear the
screams of the currency manipulators at the mere thought.

BF> As soon as we get other currencies used globally, the rest of us will
BF> gain tremendously.

Probably, but who gets the honor? The dollar is in trouble and being
manipulated like crazy, the Euro doesn't know what it wants to do, but it wants
it fast (and the Germans are still pining for their good old, stable DM), the
Yen has been in trouble for the last 10-15 years, and the Renminbi is a purely
political entity with no stability except the communist system in China (and
who wants to bet their savings on that?). I presently see no real alternative
unless someone comes up with an "international currency unit" of a basket of
leading currencies, and - most important - the whole world can agree on it. The
latter point is unfortunately about as probable as winning the jackpot in a
lottery ten times in a row,

Cheers, Bob

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