Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is PassProtect?

PassProtect provides you added safety by helping ensure that only you can access your bank account. Your PassProtect is a picture and caption that is a shared secret between you and American Bank of Commerce. When you see your PassProtect image you can be confident that you are at the ABC web site, not an imposter site.

Additionally, PassProtect remembers which computer(s) you normally use, giving you even greater protection against unauthorized individuals logging into your accounts—even if they somehow obtain or guess your Login ID and password.

2. Why do I need a PassProtect?

PassProtect is an enhanced security feature that helps protect you while you access your on-line account. On the Internet today, fraudsters attempt to steal your identity by impersonating the web sites you trust. We are committed to proactively protecting you, our customer, against such attacks. PassProtect helps us do this.

3. How does it work?

When you visit your branch office, you know our faces and we know yours. PassProtect does the same thing over the Internet. It is a new method to identify us to you and you to us. When you enroll in PassProtect, you will select a secret picture and caption known only to you. Whenever you log-in we will show you this picture so you can rest assured that you are accessing the real American Bank of Commerce banking site and not an impostor site.

We also check the computer(s) or device(s) that you are using to access the web site. Typically you will access the web site from one or two computers, such as your work and home machine.

PassProtect remembers your computer. Should you need to log-in from a different computer, such as an Internet café, we will take additional steps to verify your identity, such as ask you to provide the answer to secret questions we both know the answers to. PassProtect remembers your computer by assigning a unique identifier to each.

4. How is PassProtect more secure?

PassProtect guards you from accidentally revealing your username and password to a fake site. In addition, if someone does somehow get your username and password, he will still not be able to access your account because he is not at your registered computer.

5. What happens if I choose not to enroll in SecurEntry?

You have until March 1, 2007 to set up your PassProtect picture, phrase, and challenge questions. To access your accounts after the grace period ends, you will be required to set up your PassProtect preferences.

6. What keeps somebody from stealing my PassProtect picture?

We only show you your PassProtect picture and caption if you log-in from your own computer, or after you have answered a secret question. So, it is not possible for an unauthorized person to get access to your picture.

7. Why am I being asked a question when I try to log-in?

We ask you a secret question when we detect that you are trying to log-in from a new computer. This is to prevent someone with stolen passwords from logging into your account. Since only you know the answer to the questions, we will know it’s really you. Generally you will be asked to answer a secret question only when you log-in for the first time from a new computer. After you answer the question, you will be asked whether we should remember this computer for future log-ins. If you are using a personal computer, you should answer yes. If you are using a public terminal, you will want to answer no.

8. Can I access my account from multiple computers?

Yes, you can still access your bank account from any number of computers. If you log-in from a new computer or a public terminal, you will just need to go through one extra step of answering a secret question. This helps protect you by keeping unauthorized people from accessing your valuable information. There is no limit on how many different computers you can use to log-in to your bank account.

9. I am not an Internet expert. How easy is PassProtect to use?

PassProtect is extremely simple for anyone to use. You don’t need to memorize anything new—just use the site as usual and look for your PassProtect image at log-in.

10. I share my computer with someone who has their own bank account. Can both of us still log-in from this machine?

Yes, you can both use the same computer to log-in to your individual bank accounts. There is no limit on how many people can log-in into the bank web site from the same computer.

11. What happens if someone steals my password? How will PassProtect keep them from accessing my account?

When someone tries to log-in using your stolen user name and password, we will recognize that they are logging in from a different computer, and ask them a secret question. Since only you know the answers to your secret questions, they will not be able to give a correct answer. They will not be able to log-in.

12. Can I change my PassProtect picture and caption?

Yes, you can change your PassProtect picture and caption at any time. To make the change, go to the account maintenance link after you log-in to your account.

13. How do you know I am logging in from my own computer?

When you log-in for the first time from a new computer, we put a secure (encrypted) cookie on your computer. This cookie contains a randomly generated unique number that identifies your computer. The cookie is visible only to the American Bank of Commerce web site and does not contain any of your personal information. When you log-in after that, your web browser sends us this cookie. This lets us know that this is your computer.

14. What is Phishing?

Recently there have been attempts by fraudsters to trick people into revealing their personal information, such as passwords, by creating fake web sites that look very much like the sites of legitimate financial institutions. They send out emails randomly with links to these fake web sites. This phenomenon has been called Phishing, (pronounced “fishing”). To read more about electronic banking safety tips click here.

15. I am trying to log-in from my own computer, but the bank’s web site is not showing me my PassProtect image. Instead, it is asking me a question. What is happening?

This might happen in rare cases if you have deleted all cookies on your computer. Before answering a secret question or entering your password, make sure that you are going to the legitimate bank web site. The easiest way to ensure this is by typing the URL of the bank (www.theabcbank.com) directly into your web browser. Then, after you answer the security question, you should see your secret PassProtect image next to the password field. If your PassProtect image is there, you can be confident that you are at the legitimate web site and can enter your password.

16. What if I forget the answers to my SecurEntry Challenge Response Questions?

Contact your nearest banking center or via e-mail at helpdesk@theabcbank.com.