The History of Internet Banking
- Before the Internet became the main source for remote banking, distance banking was done over the telephone from home. This was also called home banking and the system used phone keypads to send tones to the bank computer. Several banks that were centered in New York offered home banking services to customers in 1981 as a way to promote this new system. In 1983, the first bank offered the first online banking system to the public, using a computer that connected to a phone line, with the information displayed on a TV screen. Customers were able to see their statements and recent transactions, but they still could not manage the transactions remotely.
- During the 1990s, computers became more prevalent in homes. This was when the desire for online banking really emerged. With the advances in Internet connections and encryption programs for safety, online banking started to become a more feasible option for banking clients. In 1994, banking services were made available by the Standford Federal Credit Union.
- On October 6, 1995, online banking in America first began when the Presidential Savings Bank offered its customers an online alternative to traditional banking. Other banks soon followed, such as the Security First Network Bank, Wells Fargo and Chase Manhattan Bank.
- During the 1980s and 1990s, since the technology was relatively new, hackers found ways to hack into the system and steal account information. This kind of identity theft, in combination with increasing reports of invasive spyware and viruses, made consumers anxious about doing banking transactions online. Banking companies invested millions of dollars in research and development to create the best online protections possible. Today, there is a lot more knowledge, information and security programs that help customers protect their most valuable information from potential hackers.
- By the year 2004, about 53 million Americans were using online banking to perform transactions. If this trend continues and technology becomes more efficient, faster and safer, there's a good chance that in the near future, more than half of all Americans will use Internet banking.
