In 2012, credit card and debit card fraud resulted in losses amounting to $11.27 billion, according to an August 2013 Nilson Report.

Information from the Federal Reserve suggests data fraud is one of the biggest concerns among consumers.

New Tripoli Bank has gone above and beyond to assure customers measures are in place to prevent and/or stop fraud and keep their information secure.

Vice President and Chief Information Officer Stephanie J. Barton and Vice President of Human Resources and Marketing and Compliance Officer Ann F. Bavaria sat with The Press recently to talk about the policies and systems used to keep customers’ information secure.

New Tripoli Bank was recently presented with the 2014 Digital Defense Excellence in Network Security Award.

The bank is one of 16 chosen out of 850 Digital Defense Inc. clients.

New Tripoli Bank’s IT Security Team has identified threats, enabling it to better protect the system and data from malicious attacks.

The bank also won this award in 2009.

Barton said among the implemented safety measures is an auto-locking screen saver placed on all terminals at the bank to hide any information on the screen if an employee walks away.

Daily security downloads and updates are applied to keep computer equipment firewalls current and effective.

Antivirus software on all computers is automatically monitored daily and bank staff log on every morning to double check updates have been made.

Intrusion protection service runs and is monitored by a third-party vendor 24-hours a day, seven days a week.

Internet usage is locked down; only sites needed for daily work can be accessed.

The bank is constantly monitoring reports provided by third-party vendors. The bank also employs outside vendors quarterly to provide internal and external scans on networks.

Bavaria said formal security awareness training is provided annually for staff, and alerts are sent to all employees with updated potential threats.

Additional social engineering testing is conducted randomly for all employees. This includes sending questionable emails to employees to ensure they are not opened.

Bavaria said the federal Patriot Act enacted after 9/11 was created so the government could be certain bank deposits are not used for illicit activities and pseudonyms are not being used.

Banks are, therefore, required by law to obtain a driver’s license and a current address from each person opening an account.

Bavaria said one of the nice things about banking with a community bank is most tellers know the customers.

If the teller does not recognize someone, a photo ID, such as a driver’s license and address, as well as a pin number are stored in the system for easy verification.

Although New Tripoli Bank has many monitoring systems and procedures in place, sometimes security breaches are out of its control.

With debit and ATM cards, Barton said hundreds of customers were affected by recent security breaches at major retailers.

If any of those customers banked at New Tripoli Bank, they immediately received a personal telephone call.

“We also encourage our customers to let us know if they are traveling,” Bavaria said.

Otherwise, withdrawals in another country will be questioned and telephone calls will be made or in-house monitoring may stop the transactions.

“We look at withdrawals, the distance between purchases, use of card after six months of no use and other unusual activity,” Bavaria said.

“Approximately 10 to 15 personal calls to customers are made each day,” Barton said.

VISA also issues alerts, which the bank acts on immediately.

New Tripoli Bank wants customers to talk to a live person, especially during these type of situations.

“We personally make a call and order a new card if there has been a security breach,” Bavaria said.

“We let them know what happened and ask if the existing card can be closed down immediately,” Barton said. “We also encourage our customers to monitor their accounts frequently.”

New Tripoli Bank, a locally owned and staffed community bank, exists “to give outstanding customer service.”

Both Barton, with the bank for 28 years, and Bavaria, who has a 30-year banking career, said the introduction of the Internet really increased the risk of security for the customers.

However, New Tripoli Bank continues to take pride in knowing, appreciating and helping its customers.

“We’re just a phone call or visit away,” Barton said, of the two locations serving customers in New Tripoli and Orefield.

“We don’t have an automated telephone system,” Bavaria said. “You will always get a live person. This bank is the fabric of the community.”

New Tripoli Bank has been serving customers since 1910.

Barton and Bavaria were asked why the bank goes above and beyond for the customer.

“Because people are more valuable than money,” they replied.

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Editor’s Note: New Tripoli Bank was the winner of a recent advertising contest.