Bank of America honored for Best Consumer Internet Bank & Information Security Initiatives
Posted: 08-16-2005 :

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Bank of America was named best consumer Internet bank in the United States by Global Finance magazine as part of its "World's Best Internet Banks" competition.

Global Finance magazine also gave Bank of America awards for the best information security initiatives, best bill pay and presentment, as well as best online consumer credit in North America.

Bank of America is the leading online banking site, with 13.8 million active online banking customers, 6.7 million bill pay customers, and more than 1.5 billion visits annually to bankofamerica.com.

This year, Bank of America was the first major financial services company to provide an added layer of security to help prevent fraud and identity theft with a free service called SiteKey(TM). Customers pick one of thousands of images, write a title for the image and select three challenge questions. The customer and the bank can pass that information securely back and forth to confirm each other's identity -- so the bank has an added way to protect accounts and customers can make sure they are at the legitimate Bank of America Web site.

SiteKey is part of an umbrella of security measures that include a zero liability guarantee that protects customers from fraud losses, two-tiered authentication for funds transfers, and the capability for customers to stop receiving paper statements to reduce risks associated with sending sensitive information through the mail. Bank of America also has enhanced the privacy and security sections of its Web site to include more tips about online and offline security. The site is at bankofamerica.com/privacy.

"We're very proud of the work we're doing to make customers' experiences the best of any financial institution," said Sanjay Gupta, e-Commerce executive. "We're just as proud to be leading the industry and making online banking even more secure for our customers."

Enhancements made during the past year at bankofamerica.com include:

- Inter- and intra-bank transfers. Customers can transfer money from their accounts at other financial institutions to Bank of America and vice versa, as well as set up scheduled and recurring transfers among accounts at Bank of America.

- Streamlined online applications, including a one-page form for checking or savings customers to open another account; new small-business applications; and instant approval for deposits, credit cards and home equity.

- Expanded online chat help for prospects who are investigating checking, savings and home equity products. Guided selling helps customers find the most appropriate products and services.

- Newly integrated brokerage accounts within online banking.

- Expanded online banking to include MyPortfolio(TM), where customers can view and manage accounts from Bank of America, other financial institutions, rewards programs and e-mail -- all in one place.

To sign up for online banking, go to bankofamerica.com .

About Online Banking
Bank of America is a leading provider of online financial services, and its online site, http://www.bankofamerica.com , has received widespread recognition. The site is among the top 35 of all U.S.-based Internet properties in terms of unique visitors monthly, and No. 1 among business and finance sites, according to comScore Media Metrix. Bank of America ranked No. 1 in Javelin Strategy & Research's Identity Fraud Safety Scorecard in November 2004. In the spring of 2005, the site was ranked among the Forbes Best of the Web. In the summer of 2004, The Customer Respect Group ranked Bank of America No. 1 among commercial banks for the way it treats customers online, and Keynote ranked bankofamerica.com among the leaders in experience for customers and prospective customers. The Gomez Scorecard ranked the Small Business Web site No. 1 in the Single-Owner Home-Operated (SOHO)/Micro category. comScore Networks, Inc., called Bank of America "the clear leader" in the rate of adoption of online bill payment, the leader of the industry based on overall number of active online customers, and said the bank has more than half of the online bill pay market share.

Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world's largest financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk-management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving 33 million consumer relationships with more than 5,800 retail banking offices, more than 16,700 ATMs and award-winning online banking with more than 13 million active users. Bank of America is the No. 1 overall Small Business Administration (SBA) lender in the United States and the No. 1 SBA lender to minority-owned small businesses. The company serves clients in 150 countries and has relationships with 98 percent of the U.S. Fortune 500 companies and 85 percent of the Global Fortune 500. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. http://www.bankofamerica.com