By SUSAN TOMPOR | Detroit Free Press • Published February 21, 2011
The cool factor for smartphone applications has been getting geekier - and cheekier.
Chase kicked off a Super Bowl ad in most markets to highlight how easy it is to use a Chase app to deposit a check. The guy gets up from his easy chair, puts on a hat and coat, gets his phone and stops to take a picture of a check to deposit it. He never leaves the house.
This year, the Internal Revenue Service decided to go for its own gizmo gimmick by rolling out an IRS tax app.
Sure, there are apps to check the weather, calculate your carbon footprint and play Angry Birds. But now it's cool to say there's an app for dull financial services, too.
"I go on at least a couple times a day," said Shane Brion, Chase bank branch manager in Ypsilanti, Mich.
He has used the IRS app to check when his tax refund would arrive. He uses his bank's app to track spending.
"I always check it in the morning, to make sure checks have cleared, keep an eye on the balance," Brion said.
Everybody has some sort of application, including the Internal Revenue Service. The IRS allows smartphone app users to get updates on their income tax refunds - and enter their e-mail address so that they can receive daily advice.
Apple users can download the free IRS2Go application at the Apple App Store; Android users can go to the Android Marketplace.
Brion, who is studying for an MBA in finance at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, does his own taxes. And he likes using that IRS app for free daily tips, including advice on education credits and other assorted tax tips.
His wife, Mirya, has a child care business. The picture-taking feature with his Chase app comes in handy to deposit checks from her customers.
Chase came out with its QuickDeposit feature for checks in 2010. USAA - which serves the military community - launched the industry's first mobile check deposit app in August 2009.
Other big-name banks likely will offer picture-taking deposits for checks this year, said James McGovern, vice president of consulting services for Corporate Insight, which tracks Web usage for banks, brokers and other financial service companies.
Everybody isn't going to be taking pictures of their checks. Many of us - including me - do not even own smartphones.
But banking customers who travel or aren't able to get to a bank branch can take advantage of the convenience.
In 2011, McGovern expects more financial firms to offer Android applications for the Google Droid and other phones. Some brokerages may offer more apps for the iPad, too.
Offering financial services via a mobile device isn't new.
Back in 2000 and 2001, some brokerages offered access via the old Palm Pilots and PDAs.
But old hardware had green screens, not full color, and the older mobile devices were clunkers to use.
And many people weren't eager to pick up a mobile phone to check stock prices during the bear market from 2000 through 2002.
The popularity of the iPhone sparked interest in mobile applications in the financial services industry in 2010, according to Corporate Insight.
Morningstar.com, which tracks mutual fund performance, has free mobile apps for the iPhone, BlackBerry and Android platforms.
H&R Block brags that its free Tax Central App was the top finance app for more than a week last tax season on iTunes.
Now, the IRS has an app for that, too. Taxpayers who file electronically can use that app within 72 hours after the IRS acknowledges receipt of their tax return. If you file a paper return, you'd have to wait three to four weeks.
The same time frame applies if you go online to www.irs.gov and click on "Where's My Refund?"
You're going to need to enter a Social Security number. The IRS says the Social Security number is masked and encrypted. You're not filing tax returns using that IRS app.
But the TurboTax SnapTax app does allow you to file taxes by smartphone.
Security, of course, is a worry. Chase stresses that it has robust encryption technology and that check images would not remain on the mobile phone.
"It'll be posted to the account, but the app itself will automatically log you out, typically after five minutes of inactivity," Brion said.
Will you be able to send clear photos of checks or W-2 forms (as would be needed with TurboTax SnapTax)? The quality could depend on the model of your phone or how you take the picture.
"It'll prompt you if you can't get a clear reading of a check," Brion said. "I've never run into this issue."
Ben Woolsey, director of marketing and consumer research for CreditCards.com, said that, in general, financial apps are "very safe and secure."
Consumers, though, should be cautious, particularly if they receive e-mails. Do not click on attachments promoting free, potentially bogus apps.
"I wouldn't respond to any apps that come to you - and say 'Please download me,'" Woolsey said.
Ondrej Krehel, information security officer for Identity Theft 911, said consumers should figure out how much they want to do when it comes to financial services from their phone or PC.
"Good security comes in layers," Krehel said.
"We would say that data on smartphones is less secure than on a PC, because there is just not enough awareness about smartphone security."
Some apps can give away your phone's locations to outside companies, too.
Would the IRS app be used to give out any personal details to others? Track your location?
"Absolutely not," said Luis D. Garcia, IRS spokesman.
Ah, but will that app do your taxes for you?
I guess we all know the answer to that one.
ADDITIONAL FACTS
Smartphone security:
-Smartphone users pay less attention to the security of their phones than they do to their PCs. Ondrej Krehel, of Identity Theft 911, said consumers too often do not protect the phone with a password, do not encrypt the data on their phones, and they store personal information such as bank account numbers, e-mails, Social Security numbers, including those of their family members, and other confidential information.
-Be sure to password-protect a smartphone.
-Users should make it a practice to delete their private information from the cache of the smartphone. Many do not even know that such settings exist, Krehel said. Criminals can then use data-recovery techniques to obtain sensitive data from the smartphone, if stolen.
-A hacking incident also can take place when a malicious SMS message can compromise a vulnerable iPhone. See this report: http://news.cnet.com/8301-27080(UNDERSCORE)3-10299378-245.html.
-Avoid using applications that provide direct access to bank accounts or even social-networking accounts and/or store your login credentials.
-Avoid using unsecured wireless connections (rather than the phone network connection) to access sensitive sites like banking or other sites. While you may be saving minutes on your data plan, Krehel said, you are also potentially exposing your transactions to piracy.
-Read your statements to monitor any odd activity.
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