Category Archives: Anti-Money Laundering

Anti-Money Laundering

Worldcore: 15 countries where you may encounter problems with cryptocurrency transactions or mining

PRAGUE, Czech Republic, May-10-2018 — /EuropaWire/ — 2018-2019 may be called the era of cryptocurrency regulation. After we’ve followed ICO success stories in 2016-2017, in the next 1.5-2 years we will observe various countries bringing cryptocurrencies and related processes, such as ICOs and smart contracts, out into the legislative framework.

Worldcore international company has comprised a rating of countries according to the stringency of their cryptocurrency regulations. It starts with the countries where cryptocurrencies are entirely banned, followed by those states where cryptocurrency circulation is not merely significantly restricted, but also criminalized in the framework of the national financial legislation.

Thus, there are currently four countries in the world where residents may end up in prison for several years for any cryptocurrency transactions.

  1. Nepal
  2. Bolivia
  3. Bangladesh
  4. Algeria, a recent addition to the list.

Besides the countries with criminalized cryptocurrency trade and ownership, there are numerous countries where a national ban has been imposed on specific types of cryptocurrency transactions. The degree of regulation in this sphere varies notably — from a ban on using cryptocurrency as legal tender (common in countries that have not legalized free cryptocurrency circulation) and to a complete ban on exchanges and ICOs in China (which enterprising Chinese enthusiasts forego by launching hard forks of popular currencies as ICOs and trading on foreign exchanges). Here’s a list of these states:

  1. China (ban on ICO, buying and selling cryptocurrency, advertising)
  2. India (since April 2018, the Central Bank of India has forbidden buying or selling cryptocurrency; cryptocurrency also isn’t recognized as legal tender)
  3. Russia (when cryptocurrency market regulation legislative proposal comes into effect, it will limit the legal annual transaction volume to 50,000 rubles for unqualified investors; allow purchase and sale exclusively on registered national platforms, provide for full participant de-anonymization; mining will be considered an entrepreneurial activity with mandatory sale of the mined assets on national exchanges; cryptocurrency/crypto-token will be recognized as a digital asset, but not legal tender). Cryptocurrency advertising is forbidden on certain platforms (i.e. Yandex).
  4. Vietnam (stringent national anti-money laundering regulations; gradual legalization is planned starting in August 2018)
  5. Indonesia (a ban on purchase and sale of cryptocurrency)
  6. Thailand (in February 2018, the Central Bank of Thailand has forbidden five key transactions with cryptocurrencies to financial institutions: investment, trading, establishment of cryptocurrency platforms, using credit and debit cards to purchase currency and consulting people on cryptocurrency investments).
  7. Kyrgyzstan (cryptocurrency is not recognized as legal tender, liberalization of regulations is currently under consideration)
  8. Ecuador
  9. Iceland (under the umbrella prohibitive currency regulation)
  10. Morocco
  11. Malaysia

“In the countries that have restricted cryptocurrency circulation and mining, it primarily involves cryptocurrency as a digital asset coming under the restrictions of investment or money laundering regulations. Perhaps, these states will address the issue of cryptocurrency regulation later, when the more developed countries establish adequate legislation and provide positive examples of regulation and taxation. Another aspect of the ban, i.e. in China or Ecuador, is the clearing out of the competition prior to launching a national cryptocurrency. Many countries today are implementing a partial, rather than a full ban on cryptocurrency. In case of cryptocurrencies, governments understand that it is impossible to ban them entirely. With regard to the globalization of economy and  distributed registry technologies, which form the foundation for cryptocurrencies, a complete ban will lead not only to the migration of financial assets and mining farms out of the country, but also to the departure of startups outside the country’s jurisdiction, startups that could have become taxpayers in the presence of supportive regulations,” believes Alexey Nasonov, the founder and CEO of Worldcore.

SOURCE: EuropaWire

Experian Reveals Mortgage Fraud Set To Surge In 2013

Experian predicts there will be a dramatic increase in attempted mortgage fraud in the UK next year, bringing the number of people fraudulently trying to obtain home loans to the highest level since records began in 2009.

A total of 43 out of every 10,000 mortgage applications are expected to be identified as fraudulent in 2013 – marking a rise of 13 per cent on 2012 figures and 26 per cent on 2011. The majority of attacks are likely to continue to come from first party fraudsters – essentially individuals misrepresenting their own financial circumstances and employment statuses or attempting to hide adverse credit histories.

Meanwhile, Experian’s latest Fraud Index*, which highlights the evolving nature of the fraud threat facing the UK’s financial services sector, also revealed that attempted mortgage fraud in the third quarter of this year was up six per cent on the same period in 2011, with 38 in every 10,000 applications deemed fraudulent – compared to 36 in every 10,000 12 months ago. It is also the first time within the past year that mortgage fraud has overtaken current account fraud as the area targeted most frequently by fraudsters.

Overall, 17 in every 10,000 applications received by financial institutions in Q3 of this year were detected to be fraudulent – seven per cent more than the same time last year, with savings accounts seeing a rise of 58 per cent. However, attempted fraud in the automotive finance sector fell for the sixth consecutive quarter, with 15 in every 10,000 fraudulent applications discovered between July and September 2012 – down 29 per cent when compared with 2011.

Nick Mothershaw, Director of Identity & Fraud Services at Experian in the UK and Ireland, said: “Almost 90 per cent of mortgage fraud tends to originate from genuine individuals misrepresenting their financial situations attempting to buy property that would ordinarily be out of reach. With tougher rules on UK mortgage lending set to come into force in 2014, where lenders will have to put a borrower’s ability to repay under greater scrutiny, it important that they have the correct tools in place to do this, especially as attempted fraud in this industry is set to increase significantly over the next 12 months.

“Increased fraud levels in specific industries mean that it has never been more important to ensure that applications for new credit facilities are analysed for signs of fraudulent activity. Simple steps organisations can take to mitigate risk include robust checking of new applications for credit using tools that reveal first party fraud and organised fraud rings, continually reassessing fraud risk across existing accounts and introducing true identity authentication using facts only a genuine applicant will know on all products, not just the higher risk ones.”

Via EPR Network
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Experian strikes new three-year data and analytics deal with Hitachi Capital UK

Experian has announced a renewal of its strategic partnership with Hitachi Capital UK.

The partnership will see Experian continuing to provide a range of acquisition credit risk,customer management, affordability and ID verification products.

Hitachi Capital UK operates extensively in the retail finance sector and has opted to extend its use of Experian’s Detect and Hunter fraud prevention services, improving its control of credit and fraud risk and the efficiency of its application processing.

It will also use Experian’s Electronic Identity Authentication service for real-time validation and ID verification of customers.

Andrew Davies, Head of Risk at Hitachi Capital UK said: “Experian’s analytics and data expertise has given us far better control over both credit and fraud risk, and enables us to run a fast and efficient process at the point of application. This partnership extension will enable further improvements in these areas, extend the positive experience we provide to new customers across all areas of the business and to spot opportunities to strengthen and deepen relationships with our existing customers.”

Gary Wood, UK&I Managing Director for Experian Decision Analytics, said:
“Organisations that are serious about achieving sustained growth are increasingly turning to advanced analytics to drive improvements in their decision making strategies. We have worked closely with Hitachi Capital UK to enable them to make faster and more effective decisions on new customers, to improve their offering to existing customers and to provide more precise insight into credit and fraud risk.

“We are aware that for innovative organisations like Hitachi Capital UK, investing in a highly sophisticated infrastructure that enables it to control risk effectively while helping it grow its lending capabilities is absolutely crucial. This is a significant deal that will play a huge role in protecting the organisation’s asset quality.”

Via EPR Network
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Finance Director Appointed by Tracesmart

Rhiannon Wilcox FCCA has joined the board of directors at Tracesmart, one of the UK’s leading consumer data specialists. Previously the company accountant, Wilcox will strengthen the board at a time when the organisation is experiencing rapid growth and transition due to sustained high demand for its data cleansing, anti-money laundering and debtor tracing services.

A graduate of Loughborough University, Wilcox trained with RSM Bentley Jennison followed by spells with Citigroup in Sydney and KTS Owens Thomas in Cardiff. Having established her own successful business operating within a diverse range of industries and commerce in South Wales, Tracesmart became one of her principal clients. As a recognised and respected figure within the company, the transition to board member has been seamless.

Wilcox remarked, “I am delighted to have joined the board at Tracesmart as we embark on a new financial year and I look forward to the opportunities and challenges that will arise as the company diversifies and grows. These are exciting times for the business, management and staff.”

The scope of online data driven services provided by the company’s B2B arm, Tracesmart Corporate, offers an invaluable source of consumer information to a vast and varied range of companies, from SMEs to FTSE 100 corporations. Delivering a powerful data cleansing and mortality screening service, an online provision to perform identity checks and an authoritative facility to trace people, Tracesmart’s client portfolio boasts a wide variety of industries including the pension, collection, media and financial sectors.

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Apex Signs up to Tracesmart’s Online Debtor Tracing Facility

Tracesmart Corporate has been appointed by Apex Credit Management to provide their proprietary data cleansing and online tracing services. The intuitive web based tracing system offers a single source solution, which permits the rapid and confident tracing of gone aways and absconded debtors. The facility will provide Apex with the means to conduct their tracing activities, both efficiently and ethically.

Apex Credit Management is a rapidly growing credit management provider. Headquartered in Stratford-Upon-Avon, the business is focused exclusively upon providing debt management services to the financial services sector; notably early arrears outsourcing, debt collection, debt purchase and tracing services. The company was established in 2000 as a specialist UK based consumer debt collection agency.

Apex recently created a new division, Apex Discovery Solutions, which provides dedicated tracing solutions to the financial services sector. Based in West Malling, Kent, the new enterprise boasts a large team of tracers to fulfil the recent uptake in demand from this sector. Head of Trace is Jamie McGrath, who with over twenty years of experience in the debt recovery and debt purchase sectors has extensive knowledge of tracing and compliance. Commenting on the company’s new partnership with Tracesmart, McGrath remarked, “Forging an alliance with Tracesmart enables us to broaden our data cleansing and tracing services across our client base, which will assist us in our goal of becoming a data led, ethical and compliant trace provider.”

Tracesmart is one of the UK’s leading data specialists, providing debtor tracing and consumer data services to a vast number of the country’s credit management companies. In addition to people tracing, the company also offer identity checks and anti-money laundering services to a varying and growing legion of businesses and industries.

Commenting on the new partnership, Chris Rothwell, Tracesmart’s Sales Director remarked, “We are delighted that Jamie and his recently established Apex division have chosen Tracesmart for their tracing and data solutions. Our debtor tracing facility is industry leading; we are confident we can provide increased productivity and efficiencies to any credit management organisation. We look forward to providing a first-rate and cost-effective service to our new partner, Apex.”

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Identity Checks Supplier Continues To Expand

Leading suppliers of identity checks and anti-money laundering services, Tracesmart, are to expand their workforce which will help manage the increasing demand for their services. The expansion will specifically involve the administration, sales and IT teams.

Identity Checks Supplier Continues To Expand

Tracesmart is currently active in a number of industries however the key B2B markets in which it operates include pensions and debt collection. Both these sectors use the company’s data cleansing and consumer location services to trace people in order to re-establish contact. The pensions industry further utilises Tracesmart’s Existence suite of services which can be used to identify scheme members who have relocated or are deceased, this helps pension schemes better manage their member payments, and protect themselves and their members against fraud.

Demand for Tracesmart Corporate services has already prompted the company to recruit seven new members of staff over recent months. They now plan to recruit a further eight to strengthen their numbers and continue their expansion within their core and new commercial arenas. Tracesmart’s employee levels will soon total sixty, and the company headquarters still has capacity for further growth as their Business Support Manager, Rebecca Westlake, commented,

“We recently completed the refurbishment of our newly expanded Cardiff head office. In line with our expansion plans, the improvements have allowed us to develop and deploy individual teams efficiently and effectively to optimise our work environment.”

With close ties to both his front line staff and the company’s major clients, Tracesmart’s Managing Director, Mike Trezise, is fully aware of how and when the company will continue to expand. Commenting on his company’s development Trezise stated,

“We continue to reap the rewards of our ongoing marketing and sales campaigns within our core sectors. Demand has further led us to increase our staff to meet current and new client needs. We will continue to ensure our clients receive the best possible service and I’m confident that we’ll experience sustained growth in 2010.”

About Tracesmart:
Established in 1999, Tracesmart Ltd is a leading provider of consumer intelligence services. It specialises in the provision of data cleansing, consumer tracing and identity verification.

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Tracing Specialists Set Up Office in the City

Tracesmart Ltd, leading suppliers of people tracing services, electronic identity checks and data cleansing systems, have this week established a new London office in 30 St Mary Axe, widely known as ‘The Gherkin’. The Cardiff based company has procured an office in the City due to an exponential growth in the number of clients based in and around London.

The Gherkin is situated where The Baltic Exchange was previously located and at 180 metres tall is the second tallest building in the City of London. In 2005, following a survey of the world’s largest firms of architects, The Gherkin was voted the most admired new building in the world; this allure and presence in the City were part of the reason Tracesmart chose it as their secondary base of operations as Mike Trezise, Tracesmart’s Managing Director, explained,

“The Gherkin is one of the best known and most revered buildings in London and as such was the ideal choice for our new office. Its location also played a considerable part in our decision to locate there – we currently have a large number of City-based financial clients and having an office in the heart of London’s financial district will enable us to better interact with them and meet their needs.”

The ever growing number of London and South of England clients who employ the company’s Tracesmart Corporate suite of services, was, as Trezise noted, a key factor in the decision to set up a London base. These clients include financial institutions who call upon Tracesmart to locate dormant accounts with unclaimed assets, high profile pension sector companies that utilise the company’s pension tracing services and life assurance companies wishing to conduct existence checks. Commenting on Tracesmart’s prestigious new office Chris Rothwell, Sales Director for Tracesmart, highlighted the role it will play,

“My team and I currently travel across the length and breadth of the UK to meet clients, yet we’ve noticed that more and more were requesting meetings in London; as such the next logical step was to locate an office in the City. Our new office in The Gherkin is a key part of our business development strategy as it will enable us to reinforce our current client relationships and nurture new ones by offering a geographically preferable meeting spot for those in the South East.

Cardiff will remain the headquarters for Tracesmart and we will continue to hold many meetings there. Our current offices are always well received by clients; as well as giving them the opportunity to see the company in action, many people have commented on how pleasant a business environment our offices are with the spectacular views of Cardiff Bay.”

Tracesmart’s new London office is located at:

Floor 28
30 St Mary Axe
London EC3A 8BF
Tel: 020 7469 4204
Fax: 020 7469 4001

About Tracesmart:

  • Tracesmart Limited was formed in 1999 and supplies a diverse range of consumer data cleansing, identity check and tracing tools to a wide variety of industries. Their client base ranges from SME to Blue Chip, who are all recipients of bespoke solutions, built around their specific needs.
  • Mike Trezise is the founder and Managing Director of Tracesmart. With over 25 years tracing and fraud analysis experience, his unrivalled knowledge provides the company with a distinct competitive advantage.
  • Chris Rothwell previously worked in both the financial markets and tracing industry. With a wealth of knowledge and experience, Chris is well placed to head up Tracesmart’s corporate sales team.

 

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Cardiff Based Suppliers Of Data Cleansing And People Tracing, Tracesmart, Have Launched A New Online Service To Combat Money Laundering

Tracesmart are renowned for their tracing expertise as they currently help reunite unclaimed assets with their rightful owners and offer a variety of pension tracing services. However the company also offers a host of other provisions via its Tracesmart Corporate division, not least of which is their electronic identity verification facility, ID. Identity checks are an essential part of current anti-money laundering (AML) legislation and as such, ID is currently used by a vast range of businesses as part of their AML measures.

Previously, Tracesmart customers using ID, needed to select multiple tabs and verification criteria to conduct an identity check as part of AML procedures. This is no longer the case, as Paul Weathersby, Technical Director for Tracesmart explained, It was noticed by our technical team that to conduct a thorough AML search using ID meant that multiple search tabs had to be utilised and what Tracesmart’s customers really needed was the means by which multiple tabs could quickly be searched simultaneously. As such, we have developed AML – allowing users to swiftly and confidently verify client identity. We have also created an improved interface to make this an easy and straight forward task.

Money laundering is considered to have a massive negative financial impact upon the UK economy and the addition of Tracesmart’s new AML service is another means of combating the problem, fighting those who use the money to fund criminal activities.

Speaking about the new service, Mike Trezise, Managing Director for Tracesmart, added, Our new AML service is further proof of our commitment as a company to product development, improved customer service and most importantly, confirmation of our responsibilities as a data company that we continue to fight any form of identity related crime. We strive to improve our services so that we can protect our customers, and in turn, their customers, f r o m the negative impact of identity fraud.  

    • Tracesmart Ltd was formed in 1999 and supplies a diverse range of consumer data cleansing, identity check and tracing tools to a wide variety of industries. Their client base ranges f r o m SME to blue chip companies; allrecipients of bespoke solutions, built around their specific needs.
    • Paul Weathersby – Tracesmart’s Technical Director, Weathersby is the driving force behind the development and production of Tracesmart’s suite of web-based services, and manages and directs their experienced IT team.
    • Mike Trezise is the founder and Managing Director of Tracesmart. With over 25 years tracing and fraud analysis experience, his unrivalled knowledge provides the company with a distinct competitive advantage.

     

    Via EPR Network
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    J2 Solutions Sign With Tracesmart

    Leading suppliers of debtor tracing and data cleansing services, Tracesmart welcome the award winning J2 Solutions to their continually expanding list of tracing agency clients. J2 Solutions will be utilising the company’s online people tracing system with a view to improving their already high levels of trace success.

    Operating in a variety of industries, J2 Solutions are based in Northwest England and currently employ over 30 highly trained and dedicated telephone tracing agents. The company was established in 2004 by their Managing Director, Gary Jones, who joined the debt collection industry as a doorstep collector at the age of 18, before progressing to generalised investigations and then specialising in telephone tracing.

    Jones was recently appointed to join the board of the Credit Services Association (CSA), the official voice of the UK debt collection industry, following a substantial level of involvement with the organisation and in particular his role as the driving force behind the CSA Tracing Code of Conduct. Commenting on the code of conduct and why his company has opted to use Tracesmart, Jones noted,

    “The debt collection industry has endured more than its fair share of negative press over recent years in regards to ethical debtor tracing. I fully support the CSA’s Tracing Code of Conduct and implore tracers to only conduct debtor tracing exercises using fully legitimate and ethical means. As part of our commitment to ethical tracing, J2 Solutions only utilise appropriate sources of information – one of the reasons we have opted to sign up with Tracesmart. We also hope that in using their system we can continue to improve our trace success rates and further cement our place in the top flight of tracing.”

    J2 Solutions join Tracesmart’s diverse client base, which include the likes of renowned financial institutions who use the company to reunite individuals with unclaimed assets, and solicitors who use their online systems to conduct identity checks as part of compliance measures. Tracing agencies are, however, some of the company’s key clients and Tracesmart helps these organisations to efficiently and ethically trace people; commenting on these core clients Chris Rothwell, Sales Director for Tracesmart noted,

    “Tracesmart has a proven track record with tracing agencies and our services are utilised by a wealth of companies from sole traders right the way through to blue chip. A comprehensive working knowledge of tracers’ needs and continual development of our services, ensure our clients have an effective, reliable and ethical tool to use when conducting positive and negative traces. We fully support the work of Gary Jones and the CSA’s Tracing Code of Conduct, and are now proud to welcome J2 Solutions as a client.”

     

    J2 Solutions – One of the UK’s leading tracing agencies, J2 solutions deliver professional tracing services to a wide range of sectors including; legal services, private sector, public sector, credit industry and private individuals. In 2008 they won the inaugural “Tracing Agency of the Year” title, at the Credit Today Awards.

    Tracesmart Ltd, Formed in 1999, Tracesmart supplies a diverse range of consumer data cleansing, identity check and people tracing tools to a wide variety of industries. The company’s client base ranges from SME to Blue Chip, who are all recipients of bespoke solutions, built around their specific needs.

    Gary Jones, J2 Solutions Managing Director, Gary is renowned as one of the country’s leading trace specialists. A member of the CSA board, his extensive knowledge played a key role in the development of the CSA’s Tracing Code of Conduct.

    Chris Rothwell, Tracesmart’s Sales Director, Chris previously worked in both the financial markets and tracing industry. With a wealth of knowledge and experience, Chris heads up Tracesmart’s corporate sales team in addition to providing tracing consultancy.

    Via EPR Network
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    Tracesmart Now A Member Of The Debt Buyers And Sellers Group

    Cardiff based Tracesmart, renowned supplier of debtor tracing services, has announced it has become a member of the Debt Buyers and Sellers Group (DBSG). Tracesmart has joined the DBSG as part of its commitment to the debt collection industry and to provide valuable specialist input on some of the core processes used to recover debt, namely data cleansing and tracing.

    Formed for the benefit of companies who buy and/or sell debt, the DBSG is the official voice of the sector, administering best practice and offering guidance and support where needed. Created by the Credit Services Association (CSA), the group’s inaugural meeting took place in December 2003 and was officially launched at the CSA’s 2004 Annual Conference. Today the DBSG has in excess of 80 members including some of the biggest companies in the industry who trade billions of pounds worth of debt each year.

    As well as helping to expand the company’s presence within the debt collection arena, joining the DBSG will help Tracesmart to keep its finger on the pulse of one of its core industries. Chris Rothwell, Sales Director for Tracesmart explained further,

    “Tracesmart is already an active member of the CSA, having a regular presence at their events and in their publications and also providing consultation on key industry topics. Having a pro-active involvement has helped us expand our knowledge of the industry, build our customer base and also allowed us to provide valuable guidance on the areas in which we specialise. We now hope that by working closely with the DBSG we can both provide our expertise to enhance best practice in key recovery activities and raise our company profile.”

    Tracesmart currently holds memberships and affiliations with many professional organisations and bodies; these allow the company to remain up-to-date with industry trends and also provide forums through which valuable information can be shared. Mike Trezise, Managing Director at Tracesmart, comments on the importance of aligning with industry professional bodies,

    We have a hugely diverse customer base and whether the client is a firm of solicitors conducting identity checks for anti-money launderingpurposes, or a debt collection agency using our systems to trace people, we want our services to completely fulfil their particular needs. By affiliating with professional organisations we are able to identify changes in relevant industries as they happen and tailor our services to meet client needs.”

    • Tracesmart Limited – was formed in 1999 and supplies a diverse range of consumer data cleansing, identity check and tracing tools to a wide variety of industries. Their client base ranges from SME to Blue Chip, who are all recipients of bespoke solutions, built around their specific needs.
    • Chris Rothwell – Tracesmart’s Sales Director – previously worked in both the financial markets and tracing industry. With a wealth of knowledge and experience, Chris is well placed to head up Tracesmart’s corporate sales team.
    • Mike Trezise – is the founder and Managing Director of Tracesmart. With over 25 years tracing and fraud analysis experience his unrivalled knowledge provides the company with a distinct competitive advantage.

    Quest CE Offers A Solution To New Red Flag Rules And Anti-Money Laundering Training

    Quest CE announced today the release of their new 2009 Anti-Money Laundering and Red Flags online course designed to meet USA Patriot Act requirements. To demo the new course go tohttp://www.questce.com/AML-Course-Demo/Presentation_Files/index.html

    The USA PATRIOT Act requires financial institutions to develop and implement an AML compliance program.

    NASD Rule 3011 outlines minimum standards for broker-dealers’ AML compliance programs. It requires firms to develop and implement a written AML compliance program. The program has to be approved in writing by a member of senior management and be reasonably designed to achieve and monitor the ongoing compliance with the requirements of the Bank Secrecy Act.

    NASD Rule 3011 also requires firms to provide ongoing training for appropriate personnel. This would include training for all representatives engaged in the business of providing financial advice, the sale of financial products or services, or deal in any way with the transfer of financial interests.

    Quest CE offers a complete Anti Money Laundering (AML) solution for organizations of all sizes. Quest’s Anti-Money Laundering (AML) program offers advanced capabilities that other vendors do not offer. In coordination with industry experts, Quest CE’s team of IT and database professionals created a Learning Management System (LMS) to fit the AML reporting, tracking, and training needs of Quest’s clients.

    “The system allows AML program administrators the ability to run real-time reports, upload new users instantly, and send reminder emails to users who haven’t yet completed their training,” said Patrick Torhorst, Vice President of IT for Quest CE.

    In addition to offering this advanced technology in a fully customizable web portal, Quest CE is offering the industry’s lowest available pricing to companies interested in utilizing Quest’s AML program. For as little as $2 per user, firms can have a web portal built to look like their own AML eUniversity complete with full reporting and tracking capabilities, and including Quest CE’s robust library of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) courses.

    Quest CE can also author any firm’s proprietary courses to meet specific training needs.

    About Quest CE
    Over the past 20-plus years, Quest CE has built a reputation of being the premier provider of Compliance Solutions to the financial services industry. In addition to offering CE for professionals holding insurance licenses and professional designations like the CFP, CIMA, CLU/ChFC, and CPA designations, we also provide a complete spectrum of financial compliance training solutions.

    Via EPR Network
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    Barclays release new video highlighting the risks of online fraud that their customers may face when using the internet

    Barclays new video, which is presented by television reporter Spencer Kelly, outlines the key risks such as phishing and malicious software and provides advice on what can be done to avoid these threats as well as the things Barclays does to protect customers.

    Barclays is a leader in online banking security initiatives having launched PINsentry in 2007. PINsentry uses a handheld card reader and chip and PIN technology to verify customers’ identities for online banking. Without the need for passwords or memorable words, PINsentry has introduced a new layer of security to online banking, with users being issued with a unique eight digit code, helping to fight fraudsters who hack into people’s computers or utilise “phishing” emails to steal login details. Over 1.5 million customers are now using PINsentry and it was recently named the Best Security Initiative at the Nominet Best Practice Challenge 2008 awards.

    In June 2008 Barclays became the only bank to offer all of its customers a full freeonline security software package. The package, from award winning internet security provider Kaspersky, includes anti-virus software as well as a spam filter, parental controls, spyware, adware and firewalls and is available to all customers who are registered with Barclays online banking. As a result of these initiatives and continuing work behind the scenes, Barclays has seen a dramatic 91 per cent drop in the money lost to fraudsters from 2006 to 2007 and is the only UK bank to have seen a reduction in the number of phishing attacks.

    Barclays fight against online fraud continues with a new ‘vidcast’ advising people on the best methods of internet security. The five minute video is available to watch at www.barclays.co.uk/video where viewers are also invited to post their comments including suggestions for subjects of future videos.

    For more details on PINsentry, free Kaspersky internet security software and other online security information please go to www.barclays.co.uk/security.

    About Barclays

    Barclays is a major global financial services provider engaged in retail and commercial banking, credit cards, investment banking, wealth management and investment management services, with an extensive international presence in Europe, the USA, Africa and Asia.

    With over 300 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays operates in over 50 countries and employs 143,000 people. Barclays moves, lends, invests and protects money for over 38 million customers and clients worldwide.

    For further information about Barclays, please visit our website www.barclays.com.

    Video on www.youtube.com/barclaysonline

    Via EPR Network

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    Tracesmart Reassigns Its Identity Check Solution To Its New Central Interface

    Tracesmart, renowned for helping organisations conduct identity checks for know your customer purposes, have announced that they are preparing to relocate their ID service – Smart ID Plus. The service will now be accessible directly from the company’s principal site Tracesmart Corporate. The relocation signals the beginning of a larger project which aims to centralise all of the company’s current and future online service offerings in order to streamline and improve the customer experience.

    Utilised in both anti-money laundering and anti-fraud exercises, the service will lose its Smart ID Plus moniker and simply be known as ID, part of the Tracesmart Corporate range which includes the highly regarded data cleansing service. Users of the ID service will simply log in to the Tracesmart Corporate site where they will be greeted by the new central user interface. As well as access to the ID tool the interface will also provide access to other Tracesmart Corporate services and a variety of other functions including usage history and reports, system user guides and the option to purchase credits for their subscribed services.

    Management of the technical changeover is being led by Paul Weathersby, Technical Director for Tracesmart, who has been planning the move for some time “Ensuring that our customers have an efficient and enjoyable experience when using our systems is one of our primary concerns. As such we [Tracesmart’s technical team] have been preparing to centralise our online service suite for some time – porting the ID services across to the Tracesmart Corporate site is the first step in this process. The new interface will be live shortly and months of preparation will ensure a smooth transition with no negative impact on the user experience or service functionality.”

    The centralisation of Tracesmart’s online service suite will result in a single ‘shop front’ and access point for users once they are logged in. For example, from this hub Tracesmart clients will be able to trace people one minute, then seamlessly switch to conduct identity checks the next. It is anticipated that having the range of services side-by-side will raise interest in the whole of the Tracesmart range.

    Commenting on the future improved and centralised online service suite Mike Trezise, Managing Director at Tracesmart, notes the impact it will have for their customers, “The central service portal will allow for improved customer experience and usability – a core motivation behind the majority of our technical enhancements. All of our online services will be available from this single access point, thus ensuring our customers stay up-to-date with our portfolio and remain fully informed about the services available to them.”

    Via EPR Network
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