Online banking was first started in New York by four (4) large banks in 1980s. Most banking institutions today offer online banking facilities with their checking accounts. Account holders are offered access to their funds in the bank through a secure website. This facility is designed to bypass paper-based banking and allows you to save a lot of time. Online banking has numerous advantages. It allows you to access and manage your finances on demand via a computer. This facility provides you with transactional and non-transactional privileges like letting you view your bank statement and transaction history, setup automated payments, transfer funds, make investments, pay bills and view copies of paid and cancelled checks at anytime. This is a 24/7 facility which is convenient, secure and a time-saving option for managing your funds. Online banking also supports numerous accounting applications and enables you to manage your finances efficiently. This facility is efficient and offers numerous powerful tools that make money management an easy process.
Last but not the least, this facility allows you to quickly access your funds remotely from any location in the world and saves a lot of paper and time in the long run. Online banking also has some disadvantages. This facility takes some time to set up and has a long learning curve, especially for people who are not comfortable with using computers. Websites have to be shut down for periodic maintenance and this could hinder you from accessing your funds. Also many account holders do not trust online banking and are not comfortable with sharing their personal information due to the security risks involved. Banking websites are highly secure and only allow you to access your checking account via a username and a password. Although convenient, online banking websites for deposit accounts are prone to intrusions like hacking, phishing and pharming. Banking institutions protect themselves against these intrusions by insuring their checking accounts and using digital certificates, secure passwords and virus scanners. As a rule you should never reply to phishing emails or share your username and password with anyone. All in all online banking is a green, efficient, safe and convenient way to access your checking accounts