BoV launches PC safety software for customers

Bank of Valletta has launched ‘BoV Protect’, a service backed by a software package which adds a layer of internet security to customers’ personal computer.

Developed in collaboration with Trusteer, a market leader in financial security and provider of the Trusteer Rapport software, the solution helps detect and neutralise financial malware on computers.

Michael Galea, chief officer for operations at Bank of Valletta, explained that while the bank’s systems are secured by state-of-the-art security infrastructure, the personal computers which customers use to conduct internet banking transactions can be infected by malicious software designed to simulate situations which could lead to online banking fraud.

By installing BoV Protect, customers can protect their computers and keep them clean of financial malware.

Mr Galea said Bank of Valletta was the first bank to intro-duce token-driven authentication when it launched its BoV Securekey in 2002.

BoV Protect is available for free and the software can be downloaded and installed through www.bov.com. The software does not require maintenance or user intervention, but will alert the user if it detects high risk behaviour or financial malware on the PC.

BoV Protect is designed to offer automatic protection to customers accessing the BoV website and the BoV internet banking services. It can, however, also be set to provide protection on other internet sites. The BoV Protect security application is designed to work on the most common browsers and operating systems.