Recently my friend mentioned that she and her husband were opening a bank account. I assumed she meant they had decided to switch banks. I asked her where had they banked before and why had they switched. She informed me that they weren't switching banks and that they haven't had a bank account for years. She told me this was their first bank account since they were a young married couple.I've had a bank account since I started earning a paycheck, so this was a completely foreign concept to me,
and being someone who occasionally blurts out the first thing that comes into my mind, I said, “Holy cannolis (OK, I didn't really say cannoli. I'm just keeping it clean for all of those kids out there who are interested in online banking)! You have got to be kidding! How have you managed to not have a bank account all of these years?”
She then went on to explain that when she and her husband were just starting out, they had an account with
a bank and ordered checks. They never got the checks, because someone had stolen them. The person stole their identities and quickly made use of the checks. By the time they realized what had happened, a lot of damage had been done. Their money was gone and bad checks kept rolling in. She said it was a huge ordeal for them to try to straighten out the situation.
The experience left them so traumatized that they agreed to never again have a bank account. Since then, it
was strictly cash transactions for them. They would pay a fee to cash their payday checks at stores. They would go get in lines (sometimes long lines) and pay bills directly. It was a lot of running around for them, but they felt safer doing it that way. It wasn't until they came into a substantial amount of money that caused them to open a bank account again.
She asked me about my experience with online banking. I told her that I love the convenience of paying bills online. I can schedule them to be paid on certain days. I can even set up automatic payments or transfer money to different accounts when I need to without having to go stand in line at my bank. I also mentioned that I like to be able to check all of my accounts online whenever I want, not just during banking hours.
She asked, “Aren't you worried someone will get access to your money?” I told her that I take precautions. I am careful to safeguard my personal information and financial transactions. I can actually keep a better eye on my
assets online, because I can see daily activity on my accounts. Could bad stuff happen? Possibly, but bad stuff can happen regardless of whether you are doing your business online or not. Her story is an example of that.
I told her if she is worried about protecting her assets, there are resources that can help her to keep
her money safe. I hope you find them useful, as well:
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