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>I never understood why anyone would even want a banking app though; there is nothing int can do that a website can't. A mobile phone app can let users "deposi

by jasode 3y ago

>I never understood why anyone would even want a banking app though; there is nothing int can do that a website can't. A mobile phone app can let users "deposit paper checks from home" without ever driving to the bank branch by taking a photo of the check with the smartphone camera. Last time I looked into it, a desktop website couldn't enable check deposits with a webcam. (EDIT: I don't mean technically not possible. I meant that the banks deliberately chose not to have the websites utilize desktop/laptop webcams as an alternative to smartphone apps.) Smartphone bank apps also have "push notifications" to immediately alert you of suspicious activity on your account. But if one never uses the extra features that smartphones bank apps enable, then yes, desktop bank websites can be seen as perfectly equivalent.

dTal 3y ago
> Last time I looked into it, a desktop website couldn't enable check deposits with a webcam. Why not?
- djbusby 3y ago
  Management decision.
seangrogg 3y ago
My credit union let me deposit checks via uploaded picture on browsers back around 2008ish. Don't get me wrong, I did this by taking a picture from my phone and emailing it to myself to upload - the smartphone UX simplifies that. But this is a trail long since blazed.
- couchand 3y ago
  Yes, this is one of those things that banks will sell as an add-on because capitalism. Credit unions will either just not have their act together on it (i.e. they contract with a bad service provider) or will have all kinds of useful stuff like this for free. I really want a general-membership credit union with stellar technology, but I haven't found one yet. Does your credit union by chance offer open membership?
  - seangrogg 3y ago
    Unfortunately to the best of my knowledge it does not.
attah_ 3y ago
Meanwhile most of the world hasn't used checks in 20+ years. Thank god for that. But for completeness; browsers have been able to use cameras since before smartphones. So of course it can work just the same there. "Suspicious activity" is such a bad strawman argument, i'm not sure how to address it. "Just thought you'd want to know your money is gone, lol." Either you do N+1 factor authentication for real, or you just shouldn't bother. Browsers have had push notifications for quite some time now too... so even if it was a worthwhile feature, it doesn't need an app.
- jcelerier 3y ago
  ? Suspicious activity isn't about this. For instance my bank reports me when I get a double debit (e.g. go to a restaurant and get charged twice), when a regular expense increases (e.g. some monthly payment that suddenly goes up)...
- ajb 3y ago
  The real use for notifications is to sell things or get paid for services in-person without cash. The notification provides certainty that you've been paid, so you can hand over the item/stop hanging around after the service waiting to be paid. Of course, a bank should be able to send you a text on the service of your choice. But they won't.
- jasode 3y ago
  >Meanwhile most of the world hasn't used checks in 20+ years. True, but the key word you used is "most". E.g. My home insurance refunds an annual dividend back to me and their method to pay me is paper check. Not an electronic direct deposit, nor a VISA giftcard, nor even a "credit" that can be applied as a discount off year's premium. It's a paper check. >So of course it _can_ work just the same there. Sure but that's talking in hypotheticals. Today, I have the reality of a paper check to deal with and Bank of America and Chase websites do not have options to upload images of checks for deposit. (Chase does have a paper check scanner option that doesn't require mobile phones but that's only for commercial accounts: https://www.chase.com/business/banking/services/quick-deposit-scanner https://www.chase.com/business/banking/services/quick-deposi...) >"Suspicious activity" is such a bad strawman argument, i'm not sure how to address it. "Just thought you'd want to know your money is gone, lol." No, you misunderstand. The better banking smartphone apps will require interactive approval from you to allow a particular suspicious transaction to happen. This prevents your money from being gone. (Example screenshot: https://www2.bac-assets.com/online-banking/spa-assets/images/assets-images-site-online-banking-feature-images-unusual_activity_alert-CSXc16d8707.jpg https://www2.bac-assets.com/online-banking/spa-assets/images...) > Browsers have had push notifications for quite some time now too... No, web push finally came to Safari in iOS 16.4 which was just a few months ago in April 2023. From the tone of your reply, it seems like you'd rather be argumentative instead of acknowledging that bank apps have some extra features that's convenient for some users.

by jasode 3y ago

dTal 3y ago

> Last time I looked into it, a desktop website couldn't enable check deposits with a webcam. Why not?

djbusby 3y ago
Management decision.

seangrogg 3y ago

My credit union let me deposit checks via uploaded picture on browsers back around 2008ish. Don't get me wrong, I did this by taking a picture from my phone and emailing it to myself to upload - the smartphone UX simplifies that. But this is a trail long since blazed.

couchand 3y ago
Yes, this is one of those things that banks will sell as an add-on because capitalism. Credit unions will either just not have their act together on it (i.e. they contract with a bad service provider) or will have all kinds of useful stuff like this for free. I really want a general-membership credit union with stellar technology, but I haven't found one yet. Does your credit union by chance offer open membership?
- seangrogg 3y ago
  Unfortunately to the best of my knowledge it does not.

attah_ 3y ago

Meanwhile most of the world hasn't used checks in 20+ years. Thank god for that. But for completeness; browsers have been able to use cameras since before smartphones. So of course it can work just the same there. "Suspicious activity" is such a bad strawman argument, i'm not sure how to address it. "Just thought you'd want to know your money is gone, lol." Either you do N+1 factor authentication for real, or you just shouldn't bother. Browsers have had push notifications for quite some time now too... so even if it was a worthwhile feature, it doesn't need an app.

jcelerier 3y ago
? Suspicious activity isn't about this. For instance my bank reports me when I get a double debit (e.g. go to a restaurant and get charged twice), when a regular expense increases (e.g. some monthly payment that suddenly goes up)...
ajb 3y ago
The real use for notifications is to sell things or get paid for services in-person without cash. The notification provides certainty that you've been paid, so you can hand over the item/stop hanging around after the service waiting to be paid. Of course, a bank should be able to send you a text on the service of your choice. But they won't.
jasode 3y ago
>Meanwhile most of the world hasn't used checks in 20+ years. True, but the key word you used is "most". E.g. My home insurance refunds an annual dividend back to me and their method to pay me is paper check. Not an electronic direct deposit, nor a VISA giftcard, nor even a "credit" that can be applied as a discount off year's premium. It's a paper check. >So of course it _can_ work just the same there. Sure but that's talking in hypotheticals. Today, I have the reality of a paper check to deal with and Bank of America and Chase websites do not have options to upload images of checks for deposit. (Chase does have a paper check scanner option that doesn't require mobile phones but that's only for commercial accounts: https://www.chase.com/business/banking/services/quick-deposit-scanner https://www.chase.com/business/banking/services/quick-deposi...) >"Suspicious activity" is such a bad strawman argument, i'm not sure how to address it. "Just thought you'd want to know your money is gone, lol." No, you misunderstand. The better banking smartphone apps will require interactive approval from you to allow a particular suspicious transaction to happen. This prevents your money from being gone. (Example screenshot: https://www2.bac-assets.com/online-banking/spa-assets/images/assets-images-site-online-banking-feature-images-unusual_activity_alert-CSXc16d8707.jpg https://www2.bac-assets.com/online-banking/spa-assets/images...) > Browsers have had push notifications for quite some time now too... No, web push finally came to Safari in iOS 16.4 which was just a few months ago in April 2023. From the tone of your reply, it seems like you'd rather be argumentative instead of acknowledging that bank apps have some extra features that's convenient for some users.