GeekSugar

Over Half of Internet Users Pay Some Bills Online - Do You?

GeekSugar — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 06:05:38 -0700

I love being able to do my banking online, in the comfort of my home and mainly away from long line-ups at the bank. Unless I absolutely have to, you're rarely ever going to see me stepping into a bank.

A new study shows that 51 percent of Internet users in Canada and the US are now paying at least one monthly bill online. Unlike back in 2004 when only 33 percent were doing so. I guess more people are stepping up with the times, saving trees and putting their good ol' Internets to work!

What about you? Do you pay your bills online?

Source

More Banks Offering Mobile Services

GeekSugar — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 13:00:19 -0700

When it comes to banking, I usually do as much as I can online, whether it be checking balances, transferring funds or paying bills. According to CNBC, some of the largest US banks like Citi will be launching mobile banking services so that customers can access their bank account info from the convenience of their cell phones. These mobile services will include all of the standard features of online banking including transfers, bill payments, etc.

I remember the day when my bank introduced debit cards and eventually online banking. I'm sure that mobile banking will be just as popular and well received as these advancements.

How many of you would consider doing your banking over your cell phones? Would you have security concerns? Leave all your comments below!

Would You Use Mobile Banking?

GeekSugar — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 03:00:06 -0700

My cell phone is way more than a cell phone. It's a navigator, a camera, a messaging device, and a MP3 player all in one. I seriously would feel like I was missing a limb if I ever lost this baby. But now, people are doing even more with their cells, like checking bank balances, transferring funds, and setting up automatic bill pay on their bank accounts. More than eight million customers are expected to use mobile banking by the end of this year, which is up from almost two million from the end of 2007, and with even more banks making mobile banking readily available, that number should rise even higher by 2010.

Even though making purchases from your cell is yesterday's news, mobile banking still has growing pains dealing with the issue of security. A whopping 65 percent of respondents in a recent poll said that not knowing if their info is secure is the top reason they do not participate in mobile banking. But, I have to ask: didn't we feel the same way about online banking when that first hit the streets?

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Would You Deposit Checks Without the Bank?

GeekSugar — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 16:30:53 -0800

While it's not quite as bad as standing in line at the DMV, standing in line at the bank is one of life's necessities that I could stand to lose.

A new online banking company, CheckFree Corp., is making that a reality by offering a service where you can scan your checks at home and make electronic deposits to your checking account.

"Remote Deposit Capture," which is being used by bigger banks for big companies, may be made available to us very soon. I already love the perks of what online banks now offer, so I know that I would deposit checks from home in a heartbeat! What about you?

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Geek Tip: Backup Your Data With Mozy

GeekSugar — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 13:26:38 -0700

If you don't have the time to run out and buy your own external hard drive (or the patience to figure out how to format it) you can keep it simple sister, and back up your docs and data with Mozy. You probably have a ton of stuff floating around on your computer that would be a heartbreak to lose, and a back-breaker to retrieve. In other words, it's not cheap.

With Mozy, you don't have to worry about all that cause you can back up your data in a super-secure online storage system that is free up to 2GB, and only $5 a month for unlimited storage. Did you catch that? Unlimited. And when I say secure, I mean banks, high-profile companies, and even a few Hollywood studios use it to back up their important data. Live off of your laptop? Do yourself a favor and leave the external drive at home and back it up online.

Do You Pay All Your Bills Online?

GeekSugar — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 13:15:42 -0700

It must be tax season, because I'm in a money mood; combine that with the recession, and it's one of the main things on my mind lately.

One thing I've tried to do is streamline the way I manage my money, and I accomplish that with technology; in addition to some great websites and services for managing money, I've tried to move all of my bill-paying online. If the place I need to pay has an online service to pay my bill, I use that, and if they don't, I simply set it up with my bank. In addition to being green, I have an electronic record of things I did pay or didn't.

Of course, I still have a bill I have to pay the old-fashioned way: my rent. Other than that, I have almost no use for my checkbook anymore.

What about you? Have you moved toward paying all your bills online?

Source

Use MyCleenr to Cleanse Your Twitter Account

GeekSugar — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 07:32:18 -0800

I haven't even been on Twitter for a whole year, and my account has already taken on a life of its own. I don't think I've become as obsessive about keeping my Twitter page as organized as my email inbox, but its disarray somewhat scares me.

Thankfully I found this site on Techie Buzz which will actually help you clean out your Twitter account. You know all of those inactive accounts you follow? MyCleenr will whip up a list of the unused ones so you can instantly stop following them. They swear they won't store your Twitter username and password, so it should be fine. My advice with security issues like this is to have a unique Twitter password, so you aren't entering something that is also your online banking login info, email password, etc.

Geek Tip: Text Mint to Get Your Bank Account Balance

GeekSugar — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 09:00:45 -0800

I regularly sing the praises of Mint, a free site that makes it easy to manage your finances online, so when I heard about their latest feature - text message alerts of your account balances - I couldn't wait to try it out.

If you're already signed-up to Mint, just text BAL or BALANCE to MyMint (696-468) and Mint will send you the balances from all of your bank accounts that you track in your Mint account.

Now you won't have any excuses about over-spending when you're out shopping!

Geek Tip: Playing With Your Gmail Account

GeekSugar — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 15:05:42 -0800

Did you know the periods in your gmail address don't mean a thing? That's right, if you signed up as geek.sugar@gmail.com, you'd still get emails sent to geeksugar@gmail.com. You'll even get emails sent to g.e.e.k.s.u.g.a.r@gmail.com, for the wiseacres in your family. Ooh, and anything sent to "googlemail" instead of "gmail." Honestly, it's the little things that blow my mind (and btw, none of the above email addresses belong to us!).

More usefully, you can add a plus sign to the end of your address, and then you can set up folders in your email that coordinate with that. For instance, say you open an online account with WellsFargo. When you sign up, give your email address as "geeksugar+banking@gmail.com", then in Settings, set up a filter. In the From box, add in WellsFargo or your chosen bank, in the To box, put in your newly-created geeksugar+banking@gmail.com address, and the set the filter to put in a folder titled "banking." You can also use this technique when you sign up for something and send their emails to you directly to the trash!

Geek Tip: Manage Your Money With Rudder

GeekSugar — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 14:45:00 -0700

My aunt is a bank manager, and I told her at a recent family event that I don't use a check register to keep track of my deposits and withdraws from my checking account.

She gave me a lecture about being responsible with my money, and wondered how I didn't overdraw my accounts all the time. But being that I only write one check a month for rent, and all my other bills are paid online, I don't really see the need! (Not sure if that's a Savvy approved thing to do, but hey. . .)

So when I found Rudder, it gave me yet another excuse to break my paper habit. Rudder is a cool app that delivers daily money updates right to your inbox. Rudder calculates how much money you'll have after all your bills are paid, shows you daily balances on your accounts and credit cards, and even alerts you when your bills are due. I don't even need my paper statements anymore, since Rudder keeps me on top of my money! And paired with Dime tracker, I think I've got my funds covered from start to finish. Worried about security? See why you shouldn't be when you read more.

Rudder uses the same encryption as banks use on their websites, so you can be sure that your info isn't going anywhere except to your inbox. Plus Rudder's servers are monitored 24/7, and would never even think of selling your info - they're cool like that. And the best news is that the service is free! How appropriate, right? You know, since we're talking about money and all . . .