RIYADH, 28 April 2005 — International IT security indicators have placed the Kingdom on top of the list of developing countries in terms of IT security and protection, according to a senior executive of The Saudi British Bank (SABB).
Mohammed Al-Shabib, head of Direct Banking of SABB Financial and Banking Activities, was speaking to Arab News in the context of the GITEX 2005 featuring the latest in IT-related products and services. The exhibition concluded yesterday.
He said the banking sector under the supervision of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) has led the growth in this sector by ensuring that Saudi commercial banks have the best protection features to prevent hacking and safeguard the customers’ data.
Elaborating further, the official said SABB uses the latest technology of encryption for the electronic banking services. Such encryption provides customers with the necessary privacy to access their information. Access by the customer to SABBNET or SABB Tadawul sites enables him to establish what is known as “secure circuit”.
In addition, a virtual keyboard has been provided which is considered one of the highest protection and security features. Another feature is to block the service after many unsuccessful attempts of logging on after which the customer has to approach the call center for reactivation of service subject to proper identification of the customer.
He said SABB has also inaugurated for the first time in the Saudi banking industry level an electronic site www.ektetab.com for self-registration for subscription in companies share via the Internet. This site is designed to facilitate registration and entry of subscribers’ details.
In addition, SABB launched SABB Tadawul Service which allows customers to benefit from the investment opportunities in the local share market by trading in shares via the Internet easily and conveniently.
He explained that following the great success achieved by the electronic share subscription facility, SABB was among the first to introduce this service which was first applied in the NCC IPO subscription managed by SABB.
SABB had also introduced the “Electronic Forms” which has proved very effective in providing customers with subscription forms through an independent electronic site established specially for that purpose. The measure had a positive impact as it reduced congestion at the bank’s branches to collect subscription forms and helped in forestalling related problems.