Digital Signature and Loans Applications

Digital signatures can be very useful when it comes to applying for a loan, irrespective of the type of loan.

You can choose the type of loan you are looking for and your lender of choice and fill out the application form online. No, the next step is not printing the application form. Rather, you affix your digital signature to the form and submit it online itself. Once the application is approved, the Loan Agreement will be drawn up which you need to sign. Again, you can sign it using the same digital signature. Thus, the entire application process is completed online in the most secure way possible. Not only this, you can save yourself the time and effort of visiting your lending institution's office.

Loans applied for in this way are called "eloans". Eloans are here and here to stay, making life easier for all.

Information Security - 3

For individuals and businesses alike, keeping data secure can often be a survival issue. Critical business statistics and more importantly, sensitive personal information about customers like PAN, debit card details etc if compromised, can lead to lawsuits and losses in billions of rupees for the company.
On the other hand, the head of a household who has stored the family's financial data on his desktop can go into a state of shock if his house is broken into and the computer stolen. Thieves may often not be interested so much in the gadget's value as in the information it contains and the potential for bigger gains by manipulating it. So here are some general tips to help you keep your personal information safe:

Store business and personal information separately
Avoid storing your Form 16 soft copy on your office desktop. If you have downloaded it to take a printout, delete the file or forward it to your personal email address and wipe it out from your office machine. The same rule applies for storing other information that is of a personal nature. Keeping your personal life and professional life apart probably applies most when it comes to security of information.

Fraudulent phone calls
Sometimes, while you are busy at work, just to get over with telemarketing calls, you may unconsciously give out sensitive personal details to the caller. Avoid it. For any call where you are required to reveal your account or credit/debit card number for certain transactions/enquiries, always insist that you be routed to an interactive voice response system (IVR). On an IVR, you punch in the number manually and the system recognises the DTMF tones generated by your phone. If you are using a landline telephone with a pulse/tone option, switch over to Tone or 'T' option and then punch in the numbers. If it does not have this option and only uses pulse, make the call some other time from a phone having the Tone option.

Wireless devices
Devices like laptops and mobile phones using the Blackberry service must be guarded very closely. Only employees who absolutely need to use these devices must be allocated the same. While you are travelling, never leave your laptop or Blackberry unattended. While travelling by air, never check it in registered baggage unless the airport/airline/security personnel ask you to do so. Carry it with you as cabin baggage. Enable finger print recognition in laptops. Avoid using the wallet feature in mobiles.

There is much more that can be done to ensure security of your data. The reason why we need to be on guard today is because more information is being exchanged across the globe now than ever before. While earlier it would take a few minutes for a telegraph to be transmitted, a text message now can travel the globe in a fraction of a second!

Information security - 2

Data security can be compromised by personal presence too. Let us look at 3 ways in which a person with malicious intent can try to take a peek into your sensitive information.

Shoulder surfing
Notice how your boss stands behind you at your workstation, as if to see whether you do things right. Now imagine that instead of your workstation, you are in a cyber café and instead of your boss, a stranger is standing behind you. If his intention is to grab some information from your screen or observe your keystrokes as you type your password, he is said to be shoulder-surfing.
Precaution: Always make sure no one stands behind you, observing what you do - not even the café owner/manager.

Dumpster diving
Some people are so desperate for information; they actually dive into a garbage bin and dig out paper containing data that is important from their viewpoint. It could be a draft of some report, or the printout of an as yet confidential financial statement. It may seem messy, but such people do not mind dirtying their hands to lay hold of material that could possibly make them millionaires.
Precaution: If your office has a shredder, use it to shred all waste paper as a habit or even as a rule. Or simply tear the paper into small bits if you don't have a shredder.

Piggy-backing
Most Corporates these days restrict entry to their premises to people holding electronic access cards. Have you ever observed strangers quietly sneak in behind an employee who enters swiping his access card? Who knows, that person could hang around with open eyes and ears and study the layout of your building. He could learn where your company's server room and other sensitive areas are.
Precaution: Make sure that when you swipe your access card, nobody follows you. If someone does follow, alert the security guard and get that person frisked. It's not only about bombs. Information getting leaked out can lead to potentially incalculable losses.