Protecting Yourself Online
Today there are many threats to our identities from the numerous online and physical schemes used by identity thieves to take advantage of us. To protect ourselves, it is important to be proactive by using usernames and passwords that are difficult for an identity thief to guess, by keeping our firewalls and antivirus software current and by making sure that documents with our personal information are securely disposed of. For more important information on how to protect yourself, click here to visit the Identity Theft Prevention section of our Online Education Center.

Protecting Your Business and Your Customers
As a business owner, it is important to protect both your business and your customers from threats of identity theft. By using secure usernames and passwords online and by maintaining and disposing of customer information securely you can avoid the dangers to your reputation and the potential costs to your business caused by identity theft. For more information on protecting your business and your customers from identity theft, click here to visit the ID Theft for Businesses section of our Online Education Center.

Bank of Alameda’s Online Privacy and Security Policy
Bank of Alameda’s Online Privacy and Security Policy explains how we may collect information from you online when you visit the Bank of Alameda Web site and our Internet Banking System security.

Privacy Policy
Additional protections provided by the Bank of Alameda Privacy Policy may also apply. This policy explains our collection, use, disclosure, retention and security of consumer information.

Cookies
Cookies are pieces of information stored directly on your computer. Bank of Alameda may place cookies on your hard drive for security purposes and to expedite site navigation. Cookies and similar files that we place on your computer do not contain any personal information unless encrypted, and we do not use cookies or other files to track your use of other web sites.

Bank of Alameda uses cookies to display information more effectively online and to gather data about your use of our website. Cookies allow us to collect technical and navigational information such as the date and time our site was accessed, the IP address of your computer, and the Web browser used.

Bank of Alameda uses cookies during your Online Banking session for security purposes. Any time a cookie is used your personal information is encrypted and used solely to support your Online Banking session.

You are not required to accept cookies. However, if you choose not to do so you may experience some inconvenience in your use of some online products and certain online products, such as Online Banking, require the use of cookies and similar files. To restrict or reject the use of cookies, you will need to follow the instructions provided by your Web browser.

Collecting your information
When you visit our Web site, we may collect information in order to service your accounts, save you time and money, and better respond to your needs. We may collect information that you provide to us online in applications and other forms, as well as personally identifying information such as your name, address, and Social Security Number. We may use standard software to collect non-identifying information about our visitors, such as the date and time you accessed our site, your IP address (a numeric address given to servers connected to the internet), the web browser you used and your city, state, and country.

How Bank of Alameda shares information
Bank of Alameda may share information we collect from you online with companies that provide services for us. All non-affiliated companies that act on our behalf and receive customer information from us are contractually obligated to keep the information we provide to them confidential and to use the information we share only to provide the services we ask them to perform. These companies may include financial service providers such as payment processing companies, and non-financial companies such as check printing and data processing companies.

We also may disclose customer information we collect about you online to credit bureaus and similar organizations and when required or permitted by law. Customer information may also be disclosed to companies that process your requests for products. We also may share customer information outside Bank of Alameda companies when we have your consent.

For more information on how Bank of Alameda shares your customer information, please refer to the Bank of Alameda Privacy Policy.

Accuracy of your information
Keeping your account information accurate and up to date is very important. If your account information is incomplete, inaccurate, or not current, please call, write, or email us at the telephone number or addresses listed in the Contact Us section of our website. If you choose to email us regarding inaccurate information, do not include personal identifying information in the email as email is not secure.

Linking to other sites
We may provide links to non-Bank of Alameda companies, such as merchants. If you choose to link to Web sites not controlled by Bank of Alameda, we are not responsible for the privacy or security of these sites, including the accuracy, completeness, reliability, or suitability of their information. If you are asked to provide information on one of these Web sites we strongly urge you to carefully study their privacy policies before sharing your information. You will receive notification that you are leaving the Bank of Alameda Web site when links take you outside of our own site.

Protecting your children
We do not knowingly market to or solicit information from children under 13 without parental consent. We recognize that protecting children's identities and privacy online is important and that the responsibility to do so rests with both the online industry and with parents. To learn more about protecting your children’s and your personal information, see the Identity Theft and Internet Fraud Warnings sections of our website.

Security Statement
This Internet Banking System brings together a combination of industry-approved security technologies to protect data for the bank and for you, our customer. It features password-controlled system entry, a VeriSign-issued Digital ID for the bank's server, Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol for data encryption, and a router loaded with a firewall to regulate the inflow and outflow of server traffic.

Secure Access and Verifying User Authenticity
To begin a session with the bank's server the user must key in a Log-in ID and a password. Our system, the Internet Banking System, uses a "3 strikes and you're out" lock-out mechanism to deter users from repeated login attempts. After three unsuccessful login attempts, the system locks the user out, requiring either a designated wait period or a phone call to the bank to verify the password before re-entry into the system. Upon successful login, the Digital ID from VeriSign, the experts in digital identification certificates, authenticates the user's identity and establishes a secure session with that visitor.

Secure Data Transfer
Once the server session is established the user and the server are in a secured environment. Because the server has been certified as a 128-bit secure server by VeriSign, data traveling between the user and the server is encrypted with Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol. With SSL, data that travels between the bank and customer is encrypted and can only be decrypted with the public and private key pair. In short, the bank's server issues a public key to the end user's browser and creates a temporary private key. These two keys are the only combination possible for that session. When the session is complete, the keys expire and the whole process starts over when a new end user makes a server session.

Router and Firewall
Requests must filter through a router and firewall before they are permitted to reach the server. A router, a piece of hardware, works in conjunction with the firewall, a piece of software, to block and direct traffic coming to the server. The configuration begins by disallowing ALL traffic and then opens holes only when necessary to process acceptable data requests, such as retrieving web pages or sending customer requests to the bank.

Disclaimer
Bank of Alameda assumes no responsibility for accuracy, correctness, or content of the materials provided on this website. You should not assume that the materials on this website are continuously updated or otherwise contain current information. The materials provided at this website are provided "as is" and any warranty (express or implied), condition, or other term of any kind, including without limitation, any warranty of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement, or title is hereby excluded.

Last updated March 12, 2009