Salt Harbor Case

Salt Harbor Exercise The Salt Harbor exercise was a real world negotiation exercise that added many factors into the decision making. In this exercise, Lukas and I were partners. Lukas was the buyer and I was the seller. In this negotiation, I had recently purchase some property that I wanted to build into a coffee shop. The neighbor, who is also the buyer, did not want me to build the coffee shop and instead wanted to purchase the property. Lukas stopped me from being able to build the coffee shop through legal channels. I was given the option to take my chances in court or attempt to tell the property to Lukas and open my coffee shop at another location. ————————————————- This exercise was challenging because, like any real world situation, there was varying degrees of information asymmetry that made negotiating challenging. We were both looking to get more information out of the other person in order to be in a better position to negotiate. What made this exercise even more interesting is that it simulated a real world situation that two people would deal with every day. This made it easier to understand the underlying implication of the exercise as opposed to the first exercise. ————————————————- My Strategy: My initial strategy was to see what Lukas would offer first before I made a bid. Even though I risked being anchored, I want to gather as much information about him and the decisions he is making before I made my bid. I also made sure to understand the implications of my costs and have a reasonable reservation price that would meet my needs. I understood the reservation price as the bare minimum I would ever take for the property and therefore put it at 100. I suppose in my mind, I understood the reservation price to include all possible situations. At 100, this would cover the price I paid for the property and allow me to look for another without losing money. My target value was 165. I chose this because 165 were above the range that I could sell the property to a third party and would also allow me to build my coffee shop at a more expensive location without paying an extra dime. My strategy to come out as even as possible from the exchange and in many ways, I think I ended up giving my opponent the upper hand when I failed to consider that Lukas might want the property even more than I want to get rid of it. My Mistake: My mistake came when I became anchored by the initial offer. When Lukas offered $100 as the initial offer, I thought he was indicating that his limit was really now. I never really imaged that he would offer me such a low value considering how high he authorize to pay for it. Obviously, had Lukas offered a much higher value, I would have most likely adjusted my numbers and strategy to reflect a much higher selling price. However, given his initial offer, I decided to stick with my strategy and attempt to get $165 out of him. My strategy worked to the exact specifications that I originally wanted. I get exactly my target and in many ways was successful in my negotiation. However, I failed to realize the value that the property had for Lucas and how much higher he would be willing to pay for it. I was anchored by his initial offer which subsequently affected my offers. At the same time, had I gone first, I believe a similar outcome would have emerged. I most likely would’ve offered 180 in the hopes of getting it down to 165. I believe the reason I was able to so easily achieve my target or what I wanted is because my price was set too low and it became an easy bargain for Lukas. Behaviors: During the negotiation I tried to gather as much information as possible. It was important to me to understand my opponent as best possible. In these exercises it was easy to negotiate downwards given the friendly nature of the negations. I wanted to find a win-win situation where we were both able to come out of the negotiation feeling good about it. On the other hand, I think Lukas just wanted to maximize his outcome and had no desire to help me win as well. This isn’t necessarily bad in a situation where we would never likely encounter each other gain. I noticed that he was very determined to get the most out of the negotiation. He made a very low offer which made me think that he had a lower reservation price. In general, the mood of the negotiation was very light hearted and open. We were able to discuss our positions and able to reach an agreement. Lukas and I were able to negotiate an agreement that made me satisfied with the outcome. It was a pleasant negotiation overall. If we were to negotiate again in the future, I would keep the lessons I learned in mind and fight harder to achieve a better than optimal outcome, knowing that Lukas will likely attempt to anchor my offer downwards. Lessons: The primary lesson that I learned is to watch out for anchors and also to fight harder for my position. This is especially true if a future negotiation is unlikely to happen. I need to try and maximize the negotiation. An anchor is a powerful tool that affects the negotiation. In future, I will consider harder use the anchor effect to my advantage. Another lesson I learned is that how someone feels following a negotiation is surprisingly relative. In other words, a person may feel happier having gained less money than if they gained more money but felt like they could’ve gotten more. I experienced this phenomenon. I felt very satisfied with the negotiation afterwards, but when I learned that he had a much higher limit and that he made it seem like it was much lower, made me very upset. In a way, I felt like I was lied to or in deceived, even though Lukas did nothing wrong. Having information is only one of the many tools a good negotiator uses to achieve a better result. ————————————————- Grades: Henrique 9, Lukas 9 I feel strongly that Lukas and I did a good job negotiating. I was able to reach my target of 165 and Lukas was able to get a better deal than what he felt was â€Å"good† (200). Overall, it was a mutually beneficial negotiation. The reason I am giving Lukas and I 9s is due to the fact that there’s always room for improvement. We both could’ve gotten a better deal if we were better negotiators. We both tried to implement the tools we learned in class in order to achieve the outcome we wanted and needless to say, we both learned the material well. Lukas used an anchor and I gathered information to understand how much he’s willing to negotiate.

Comparative Analysis of Private, Public Banks

Ibmr| study on impact of technology on customer needs in banking| | | NAYANA SHREE N S| MBA FINANCE| Project on study on impact of technology on customer needs in banking SEMESTER IV SUBMITTED BY NAYANA SHREE N S ROLL NO. IBMR COLLEGE IBMR COLLEGE Address: CERTIFICATE This is to certify that Nayana Shree N S of MBA FINANCE Semester IV {2012-13} has successfully completed the project on â€Å"Project on study on impact of technology on customer needs in banking† under the guidance of Mrs. Bickram . Course Co-ordinatorPrincipalProject Guide/ Internal Examiner External Examiner DECLARATION I Nayana Shree N S the student of MBA Finance Semester IV {2012-13} hereby declare that I have completed the project on â€Å"Project on study on impact of technology on customer needs in banking†. The information submitted is true and original to the best of my knowledge. Signature Nayana Shree N S Roll No. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Many people have played a part in making this project study a su ccess by giving their valuable inputs and useful suggestions.Firstly I would express my gratitude to the University Of Mysore for providing me the opportunity to study the practical aspects of banking and insurance. I am thankful to the principal Mrs. xxxxxxx for giving me an opportunity to work on this project. I am also thankful to our co-ordinator Mrs. xxxxxx for her immeasurable encouragement and support. I am also particularly grateful to my project guide xxxxx for extending his support and time. INDEX Chapter No. | Titles| Pg. No. | 1| Introduction| 1-7| 2| Role Of Technology| 8| 3| E-Banking| 9-12| | Digital Signatures| 13-15| 5| Card Skimming| 16| 6| Credit Cards| 17-20| 7| Mobile Banking| 21-23| 8| Electronic Funds Transfer| 24-26| 9| Debit Cards| 27-33| 10| Telephone Banking| 34-35| 11| Uses Of Information Technology In Banks| 36-39| 12| Technology Vision 2020| 40-44| 13| Present Level of Computerization| 45-46| 14| Advantages of Technology| 47-48| 15| Disadvantages of Tec hnology| 49-50| 16| Nature and Change in Banking| 51-53| 17| Issues and Challenges| 54| 18| Countermeasures to Frauds| 55-58| 19| Conclusion| 59| 20| Bibliography| 60| INTRODUCTIONIn the five decades since independence, banking in India has evolved through four distinct phases. During Fourth phase, also called as Reform Phase, Recommendations of the Narasimham Committee (1991) paved the way for the reform phase in the banking. Important initiatives with regard to the reform of the banking system were taken in this phase. Important among these have been introduction of new accounting and prudential norms relating to income recognition, provisioning and capital adequacy, deregulation of interest rates & easing of norms for entry in the field of banking.Entry of new banks resulted in a paradigm shift in the ways of banking in India. The growing competition, growing expectations led to increased awareness amongst banks on the role and importance of technology in banking. The arrival of foreign and private banks with their superior state-of-the-art technology-based services pushed Indian Banks also to follow suit by going in for the latest technologies so as to meet the threat of competition and retain their customer base. Indian banking industry, today is in the midst of an IT revolution.A combination of regulatory and competitive reasons have led to increasing importance of total banking automation in the Indian Banking Industry. Information Technology has basically been used under two different avenues in Banking. One is Communication and Connectivity and other is Business Process Reengineering. Information technology enables sophisticated product development, better market infrastructure, implementation of reliable techniques for control of risks and helps the financial intermediaries to reach geographically distant and diversified markets.In view of this, technology has changed the contours of three major functions performed by banks, i. e. , access to liquidi ty, transformation of assets and monitoring of risks. Further, Information technology and the communication networking systems have a crucial bearing on the efficiency of money, capital and foreign exchange markets. The Software Packages for Banking Applications in India had their beginnings in the middle of 80s, when the Banks started computerizing the branches in a limited manner.The early 90s saw the plummeting hardware prices and advent of cheap and inexpensive but high-powered PCs and servers and banks went in for what was called Total Branch Automation (TBA) Packages. The middle and late 90s witnessed the tornado of financial reforms, deregulation, globalization etc. coupled with rapid revolution in communication technologies and evolution of novel concept of ‘convergence' of computer and communication technologies, like Internet, mobile / cell phones etc. MILESTONESIn India, banks as well as other financial entities entered the world of information technology and with I ndian Financial Net (INFINET). INFINET, a wide area satellite based network (WAN) using VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminals) technology, was jointly set up by the Reserve Bank and Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology (IDRBT) in June 1999. The Indian Financial Network (INFINET) which initially comprised only the public sector banks was opened up for participation by other categories of members.The first set of applications that could benefit greatly from the use of technological advances in the computer and communications area relate to the Payment systems which form the lifeline of any banking activity. The process of reforms in payment and settlement systems has gained momentum with the implementation of projects such as NDS ((Negotiated Dealing System), CFMS (Centralised Funds Management System) for better funds management by banks and SFMS (Structured Financial Messaging Solution) for secure message transfer.This would result in funds transfers and funds-r elated message transfer to be routed electronically across banks using the medium of the INFINET. Negotiated dealing system (NDS), which has become operational since February 2002 and RTGS (Real Time Gross Settlement system) scheduled towards the end of 2003 are other major developments in the area. Internet has significantly influenced delivery channels of the banks. Internet has emerged as an important medium for delivery of banking products & services.Detailed guidelines of RBI for Internet Banking has prepared the necessary ground for growth of Internet Banking in India. The Information Technology Act, 2000 has given legal recognition to creation, trans-mission and retention of an electronic (or magnetic) data to be treated as valid proof in a court of law, except in those areas, which continue to be governed by the provisions of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.As stated in RBI's Annual Monetary and Credit Policy 2002-2003: â€Å"To reap the full benefits of such electroni c message transfers, it is necessary that banks bestow sufficient attention on the computerization and networking of the branches situated at commercially important centers on a time-bound basis. Intra-city and intra-bank networking would facilitate in addressing the â€Å"last mile† problem which would in turn result in quick and efficient funds transfers across the country†. Implementation of Centralized Funds Management SystemThe centralized funds management system (CFMS) provides for a centralized viewing of balance positions of the account holders across different accounts maintained at various locations of RBI. While the first phase of the system covering the centralized funds enquiry system (CFES) has been made available to the users, the second phase comprising the centralized funds transfer system (CFTS) would be made available by the middle of 2003. So far, 54 banks have implemented the system at their treasuries/funds management branches.Certification and Dig ital Signatures The mid-term Review of October 2002 indicated the need for information security on the network and the use of public key infrastructure (PKI) by banks. The Controller of Certifying Authorities, Government of India, have approved the Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology (IDRBT) as a Certification Authority (CA) for digital signatures. Consequently, the process of setting up of registration authorities (RA) under the CA has commenced at various banks.In addition to the negotiated dealing system (NDS), the electronic clearing service (ECS) and electronic funds transfer (EFT) are also being enhanced in terms of security by means of implementation of PKI and digital signatures using the facilities offered by the CA. Committee on Payment Systems In order to examine the entire gamut of the process of reforms in payment and settlement systems which would be culminating with the real time gross settlement (RTGS) system, a Committee on Payment Systems ( Chairman: Dr. R. H.Patil) was set up in 2002. The Committee, after examining the various aspects relating to payment and settlement systems, submitted its report in September 2002 along with a draft Payment Systems Bill. The draft Bill provides, inter alia, a legal basis for netting, apart from empowering RBI to have regulatory and oversight powers over payment and settlement systems of the country. The report of the Committee was put on the RBI website for wider dissemination. The draft Bill has been forwarded to the Government. Multi-application Smart CardsRecognizing the need for technology based payment products and the growing importance of smart card based payment flows, a pilot project for multi-application smart cards in conjunction with a few banks and vendors, under the aegis of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Government of India, has been initiated. The project is aimed at the formulation of standards for multi-application smart cards on the bas is of inter-operable systems and technological components of the entire system. Special Electronic Funds TransferAs indicated in the mid-term Review of October 2002, national EFT (NEFT) is being introduced using the backbone of the structured financial messaging system (SFMS) of the IDRBT. NEFT would provide for movement of electronic transfer of funds in a safe, secure and quick manner across branches of any bank to any other bank through a central gateway of each bank, with the inter-bank settlement being effected in the books of account of banks maintained at RBI. Since this scheme requires connectivity across a large number of branches at many cities, a special EFT (SEFT) was introduced in April 2003 covering about 3000 branches in 500 cities.This has facilitated same day transfer of funds across accounts of constituents at all these branches. National Settlement System (NSS) The clearing and settlement activities are dispersed through 1,047 clearing houses managed by RBI, the S tate Bank of India and its associates, public sector banks and other institutions. In order to facilitate banks to have better control over their funds, it is proposed to introduce national settlement system (NSS) in a phased manner. Real Time Gross Settlement System (RTGS) As indicated in the mid-term Review of October 2002, development of the various software modules for the RTGS system is in progress.The initial set of modules is expected to be delivered by June 2003 for members to conduct tests and familiarisation exercises. The live run of RTGS is scheduled towards the end of 2003. Reporting of Call/Notice Money Market Transactions on NDS Platform Negotiated dealing system (NDS), which has become operational since February 2002, enables on-line dealing and dissemination of trade information relating to instruments in money, government securities and foreign exchange markets. Membership in NDS is open to all institutions which are members of INFINET and are maintaining subsidiar y general ledger (SGL) Account with RBI.These include banks, financial institutions (FIs), primary dealers (PDs), insurance companies, mutual funds and any other institution as admitted by RBI. At present, all deals in government securities, call/notice/term money, CDs and CP executed among NDS members have to be reported automatically through NDS, if the deal is done on NDS and within 15 minutes of concluding the deal, if done outside NDS. However, it has been observed that a very sizeable proportion of daily call/notice money market deals is not reported by members on NDS as stipulated.With a view to improving transparency and strengthening efficiency in the market, it is proposed that: 1. From the fortnight beginning May 3, 2003, it would be mandatory for all NDS members to report all their call/notice money market deals on NDS. Deals done outside NDS should be reported within 15 minutes on NDS, irrespective of the size of the deal or whether the counterparty is a member of the N DS or not. 2. Full compliance with the reporting requirement to NDS will be reviewed in September 2003.In case there is repeated non-reporting of deals by an NDS member, it will be considered whether non-reported deals by that member should be treated as invalid with effect from a future date. ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY Information Technology has basically been used under two different avenues in Banking. One is Communication and Connectivity and other is Business Process Reengineering. Information technology enables sophisticated product development, better market infrastructure, implementation of reliable techniques for control of risks and helps the financial intermediaries to reach geographically distant and diversified markets.In view of this, technology has changed the contours of three major functions performed by banks, i. e. , access to liquidity, transformation of assets and monitoring of risks. Further, Information technology and the communication networking systems have a crucia l bearing on the efficiency of money, capital and foreign exchange markets. Internet has significantly influenced delivery channels of the banks. Internet has emerged as an important medium for delivery of banking products ; services. Detailed guidelines of RBI for Internet Banking has prepared the necessary ground for growth of Internet Banking in India.The Information Technology Act, 2000 has given legal recognition to creation, transmission and retention of an electronic (or magnetic) data to be treated as valid proof in a court of law, except in those areas, which continue to be governed by the provisions of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881. As stated in RBI's Annual Monetary and Credit Policy 2002-2003: â€Å"To reap the full benefits of such electronic message transfers, it is necessary that banks bestow sufficient attention on the computerisation and networking of the branches situated at commercially important centres on a time-bound basis.Intra-city and intra-bank netw orking would facilitate in addressing the â€Å"last mile† problem which would in turn result in quick and efficient funds transfers across the country†. E-BANKING Online banking (or Internet banking) allows customers to conduct financial transactions on a secure website operated by their retail or virtual bank, credit union or building society. Online banking solutions have many features and capabilities in common, but traditionally also have some that are application specific. The common features fall broadly into several categories Transactional (e. g. , performing a financial transaction such as an account to account transfer, paying a bill, wire transfer, apply for a loan, new account, etc. ) * Payments to third parties, including bill payments and telegraphic/wire transfers * Funds transfers between a customer's own transactional account and savings accounts * Investment purchase or sale * Loan applications and transactions, such as repayments of enrollments * Non -transactional (e. g. , online statements, cheque links, cobrowsing, chat) * Viewing recent transactions Downloading bank statements , for example in PDF format * Viewing images of paid cheques * Financial Institution Administration * Management of multiple users having varying levels of authority * Transaction approval process Features commonly unique to Internet banking include Personal financial management support, such as importing data into personal accounting software Some online banking platforms support account aggregation to allow the customers to monitor all of their accounts in one place whether they are with their main bank or with other institutions. History of E-BankingThe precursor for the modern home online banking services were the distance banking services over electronic media from the early 1980s. The term online became popular in the late '80s and referred to the use of a terminal, keyboard and TV (or monitor) to access the banking system using a phone line. â⠂¬ËœHome banking’ can also refer to the use of a numeric keypad to send tones down a phone line with instructions to the bank. Online services started in New York in 1981 when four of the city’s major banks (Citibank, Chase Manhattan, Chemical andManufacturers Hanover) offered home banking services[1] using the videotex system.Because of the commercial failure of videotex these banking services never became popular except in France where the use of videotex (Minitel) was subsidised by the telecom provider and the UK, where the Prestel system was used. The UK's first home online banking services[2] was set up by Bank of Scotland for customers of the Nottingham Building Society (NBS) in 1983. [3] The system used was based on the UK's Prestel system and used a computer, such as the BBC Micro, or keyboard (Tandata Td1400) connected to the telephone system and television set.The system (known as ‘Homelink') allowed on-line viewing of statements, bank transfers and bil l payments. In order to make bank transfers and bill payments, a written instruction giving details of the intended recipient had to be sent to the NBS who set the details up on the Homelink system. Typical recipients were gas, electricity and telephone companies and accounts with other banks. Details of payments to be made were input into the NBS system by the account holder via Prestel.A cheque was then sent by NBS to the payee and an advice giving details of the payment was sent to the account holder. BACS was later used to transfer the payment directly. Stanford Federal Credit Union was the first financial institution to offer online internet banking services to all of its members in October 1994. [citation needed] Today, many banks are internet only banks. Unlike their predecessors, these internet only banks do not maintain brick and mortar bank branches. Instead, they typically differentiate themselves by offering better interest rates and online banking features.Security Prot ection through single password authentication, as is the case in most secure Internet shopping sites, is not considered secure enough for personal online banking applications in some countries. Basically there exist two different security methods for online banking. 1. The PIN/TAN system where the PIN represents a password, used for the login and TANs representing one-time passwords to authenticate transactions. TANs can be distributed in different ways, the most popular one is to send a list of TANs to the online banking user by postal letter.The most secure way of using TANs is to generate them by need using asecurity token. These token generated TANs depend on the time and a unique secret, stored in the security token (this is called two-factor authentication or 2FA). Usually online banking with PIN/TAN is done via a web browser using SSL secured connections, so that there is no additional encryption needed. Another way to provide TANs to an online banking user is to send the TAN of the current bank transaction to the user's (GSM) mobile phone via SMS. The SMS text usually quotes the transaction amount and details, the TAN is only valid for a short period of time.Especially in Germany and Austria, many banks have adopted this â€Å"SMS TAN† service as it is considered very secure. 2. Signature based online banking where all transactions are signed and encrypted digitally. The Keys for the signature generation and encryption can be stored on smartcards or any memory medium, depending on the concrete implementation. Attacks Most of the attacks on online banking used today are based on deceiving the user to steal login data and valid TANs. Two well known examples for those attacks are phishing and pharming. Cross-site scripting and keylogger/Trojan horses can also be used to steal login information.A method to attack signature based online banking methods is to manipulate the used software in a way, that correct transactions are shown on the screen and faked transactions are signed in the background. A recent FDIC Technology Incident Report, compiled from suspicious activity reports banks file quarterly, lists 536 cases of computer intrusion, with an average loss per incident of $30,000. That adds up to a nearly $16-million loss in the second quarter of 2007. Computer intrusions increased by 150 percent between the first quarter of 2007 and the second.In 80 percent of the cases, the source of the intrusion is unknown but it occurred during online banking, the report states. The most recent kind of attack is the so-called Man in the Browser attack, where a Trojan horse permits a remote attacker to modify the destination account number and also the amount. Countermeasures There exist several countermeasures which try to avoid attacks. Digital certificates are used against phishing and pharming, the use of class-3 card readers is a measure to avoid manipulation of transactions by the software in signature based online banking variant s.To protect their systems against Trojan horses, users should use virus scanners and be careful with downloaded software or e-mail attachments. DIGITAL SIGNATURES A digital signature or digital signature scheme is a mathematical scheme for demonstrating the authenticity of a digital message or document. A valid digital signature gives a recipient reason to believe that the message was created by a known sender, and that it was not altered in transit. Digital signatures are commonly used for software distribution, financial transactions, and in other cases where it is important to detect forgery or tampering.Digital signatures are often used to implement electronic signatures, a broader term that refers to any electronic data that carries the intent of a signature, but not all electronic signatures use digital signatures. In some countries, including the United States, India, and members of the European Union, electronic signatures have legal significance. However, laws concerning e lectronic signatures do not always make clear whether they are digital cryptographic signatures in the sense used here, leaving the legal definition, and so their importance, somewhat confused.Digital signatures employ a type of asymmetric cryptography. For messages sent through a nonsecure channel, a properly implemented digital signature gives the receiver reason to believe the message was sent by the claimed sender. Digital signatures are equivalent to traditional handwritten signatures in many respects; properly implemented digital signatures are more difficult to forge than the handwritten type. Digital signature schemes in the sense used here are cryptographically based, and must be implemented properly to be effective.Digital signatures can also provide non-repudiation, meaning that the signer cannot successfully claim they did not sign a message, while also claiming their private key remains secret; further, some non-repudiation schemes offer a time stamp for the digital sig nature, so that even if the private key is exposed, the signature is valid nonetheless. Digitally signed messages may be anything representable as a bitstring: examples include electronic mail, contracts, or a message sent via some other cryptographic protocol. A digital signature scheme typically consists of three algorithms: 1.A key generation algorithm that selects a private key uniformly at random from a set of possible private keys. The algorithm outputs the private key and a corresponding public key. 2. A signing algorithm that, given a message and a private key, produces a signature. 3. A signature verifying algorithm that, given a message, public key and a signature, either accepts or rejects the message's claim to authenticity. Two main properties are required. First, a signature generated from a fixed message and fixed private key should verify the authenticity of that message by using the corresponding public key.Secondly, it should be computationally infeasible to genera te a valid signature for a party who does not possess the private key. Uses of digital signatures As organizations move away from paper documents with ink signatures or authenticity stamps, digital signatures can provide added assurances of the evidence to provenance, identity, and status of an electronic document as well as acknowledging informed consent and approval by a signatory. The United States Government Printing Office (GPO) publishes electronic versions of the budget, public and private laws, and congressional bills with digital signatures.Universities including Penn State, University of Chicago, and Stanford are publishing electronic student transcripts with digital signatures. Below are some common reasons for applying a digital signature to communications: Authentication Although messages may often include information about the entity sending a message, that information may not be accurate. Digital signatures can be used to authenticate the source of messages. When owne rship of a digital signature secret key is bound to a specific user, a valid signature shows that the message was sent by that user.The importance of high confidence in sender authenticity is especially obvious in a financial context. For example, suppose a bank's branch office sends instructions to the central office requesting a change in the balance of an account. If the central office is not convinced that such a message is truly sent from an authorized source, acting on such a request could be a grave mistake. Integrity In many scenarios, the sender and receiver of a message may have a need for confidence that the message has not been altered during transmission.Although encryption hides the contents of a message, it may be possible to change an encrypted message without understanding it. (Some encryption algorithms, known as nonmalleable ones, prevent this, but others do not. ) However, if a message is digitally signed, any change in the message after signature will invalidate the signature. Furthermore, there is no efficient way to modify a message and its signature to produce a new message with a valid signature, because this is still considered to be computationally infeasible by most cryptographic hash functions (see collision resistance). Digital signatures vs. nk on paper signatures An ink signature can be easily replicated from one document to another by copying the image manually or digitally. Digital signatures cryptographically bind an electronic identity to an electronic document and the digital signature cannot be copied to another document. Paper contracts often have the ink signature block on the last page, and the previous pages may be replaced after a signature is applied. Digital signatures can be applied to an entire document, such that the digital signature on the last page will indicate tampering if any data on any of the pages have been altered. CARD SKIMMING Card skimming’ is the illegal copying of information from the magnet ic strip of a credit or ATM card. It is a more direct version of a phishing scam. The scammers try to steal your details so they can access your accounts. Once scammers have skimmed your card, they can create a fake or ‘cloned’ card with your details on it. The scammer is then able to run up charges on your account. Card skimming is also a way for scammers to steal your identity (your personal details) and use it to commit identity fraud. By stealing your personal details and account numbers the scammer may be able to borrow money or take out loans in your name.Warning signs †¢A shop assistant takes your card out of your sight in order to process your transaction. †¢You are asked to swipe your card through more than one machine. †¢You see a shop assistant swipe the card through a different machine to the one you used. †¢You notice something suspicious about the card slot on an ATM (e. g. an attached device). †¢You notice unusual or unauthorised transactions on your account or credit card statement. Protect yourself from card skimming †¢Keep your credit card and ATM cards safe. Do not share your personal identity number (PIN) with anyone. Do not keep any written copy of your PIN with the card. Check your bank account and credit card statements when you get them. If you see a transaction you cannot explain, report it to your credit union or bank. †¢Choose passwords that would be difficult for anyone else to guess. CREDIT CARDS A credit card is a small plastic card issued to users as a system of payment. It allows its holder to buy goods and services based on the holder's promise to pay for these goods and services. [1] The issuer of the card creates a revolving account and grants a line of credit to the consumer (or the user) from which the user can borrow money for payment to a merchant or as a cash advance to the user.A credit card is different from a charge card: a charge card requires the balance to be paid in full each month. In contrast, credit cards allow the consumers a continuing balance of debt, subject to interest being charged. A credit card also differs from a cash card, which can be used like currency by the owner of the card. Most credit cards are issued by banks or credit unions, and are the shape and size specified by the ISO/IEC 7810standard as ID-1. This is defined as 85. 60 ? 53. 98 mm (3. 370 ? 2. 125 in) (33/8 ? 21/8 in) in size .How credit cards work Credit cards are issued by a credit card issuer, such as a bank or credit union, after an account has been approved by the credit provider, after which cardholders can use it to make purchases at merchants accepting that card. Merchants often advertise which cards they accept by displaying acceptance marks – generally derived from logos – or may communicate this orally, as in â€Å"Credit cards are fine† (implicitly meaning â€Å"major brands†), â€Å"We take (brands X, Y, and Z)†, or â₠¬Å"We don't take credit cards†.When a purchase is made, the credit card user agrees to pay the card issuer. The cardholder indicates consent to pay by signing a receiptwith a record of the card details and indicating the amount to be paid or by entering a personal identification number (PIN). Also, many merchants now accept verbal authorizations via telephone and electronic authorization using the Internet, known as a card not present transaction (CNP).Electronic verification systems allow merchants to verify in a few seconds that the card is valid and the credit card customer has sufficient credit to cover the purchase, allowing the verification to happen at time of purchase. The verification is performed using a credit card payment terminal or point-of-sale (POS) system with a communications link to the merchant's acquiring bank. Data from the card is obtained from amagnetic stripe or chip on the card; the latter system is called Chip and PIN in the United Kingdom and Irelan d, and is implemented as anEMV card.For card not present transactions where the card is not shown (e. g. , e-commerce, mail order, and telephone sales), merchants additionally verify that the customer is in physical possession of the card and is the authorized user by asking for additional information such as thesecurity code printed on the back of the card, date of expiry, and billing address. Each month, the credit card user is sent a statement indicating the purchases undertaken with the card, any outstanding fees, and the total amount owed.After receiving the statement, the cardholder may dispute any charges that he or she thinks are incorrect (see 15 U. S. C.  § 1643, which limits cardholder liability for unauthorized use of a credit card to $50, and the Fair Credit Billing Act for details of the US regulations). Otherwise, the cardholder must pay a defined minimum proportion of the bill by a due date, or may choose to pay a higher amount up to the entire amount owed. The cre dit issuer charges interest on the amount owed if the balance is not paid in full (typically at a much higher rate than most other forms of debt).In addition, if the credit card user fails to make at least the minimum payment by the due date, the issuer may impose a â€Å"late fee† and/or other penalties on the user. To help mitigate this, some financial institutions can arrange for automatic payments to be deducted from the user's bank accounts, thus avoiding such penalties altogether as long as the cardholder has sufficient funds. Interest charges Credit card issuers usually waive interest charges if the balance is paid in full each month, but typically will charge full interest on the entire outstanding balance from the date of each purchase if the total balance is not paid.For example, if a user had a $1,000 transaction and repaid it in full within this grace period, there would be no interest charged. If, however, even $1. 00 of the total amount remained unpaid, interest would be charged on the $1,000 from the date of purchase until the payment is received. The precise manner in which interest is charged is usually detailed in a cardholder agreement which may be summarized on the back of the monthly statement. The general calculation formula most financial institutions use to determine the amount of interest to be charged is APR/100 x ADB/365 x number of days revolved.Take the annual percentage rate (APR) and divide by 100 then multiply to the amount of the average daily balance (ADB) divided by 365 and then take this total and multiply by the total number of days the amount revolved before payment was made on the account. Financial institutions refer to interest charged back to the original time of the transaction and up to the time a payment was made, if not in full, as RRFC or residual retail finance charge.Thus after an amount has revolved and a payment has been made, the user of the card will still receive interest charges on their statement a fter paying the next statement in full (in fact the statement may only have a charge for interest that collected up until the date the full balance was paid, i. e. when the balance stopped revolving). The credit card may simply serve as a form of revolving credit, or it may become a complicated financial instrument with multiple balance segments each at a different interest rate, possibly with a single umbrella credit limit, or with separate credit limits applicable to the various balance segments.Usually this compartmentalization is the result of special incentive offers from the issuing bank, to encourage balance transfers from cards of other issuers. In the event that several interest rates apply to various balance segments, payment allocation is generally at the discretion of the issuing bank, and payments will therefore usually be allocated towards the lowest rate balances until paid in full before any money is paid towards higher rate balances.Interest rates can vary considera bly from card to card, and the interest rate on a particular card may jump dramatically if the card user is late with a payment on that card or any other credit instrument, or even if the issuing bank decides to raise its revenue. Benefits to customers The main benefit to each customer is convenience. Compared to debit cards and cheques, a credit card allows small short-term loans to be quickly made to a customer who need not calculate a balance remaining before every transaction, provided the total charges do not exceed the maximum credit line for the card.Credit cards also provide more fraud protection than debit cards. In the UK for example, the bank is jointly liable with the merchant for purchases of defective products over ? 100. [5] Many credit cards offer rewards and benefits packages, such as offering enhanced product warranties at no cost, free loss/damage coverage on new purchases, and points which may be redeemed for cash, products, or airline tickets. Additionally, carr ying a credit card may be a convenience to some customers as it eliminates the need to carry any cash for most purposes.MOBILE BANKING Mobile banking (also known as M-Banking, mbanking, SMS Banking) is a term used for performing balance checks, account transactions, payments, credit applications and other banking transactions through a mobile device such as a mobile phone or Personal Digital Assistant (PDA). The earliest mobile banking services were offered over SMS. With the introduction of the first primitive smart phones withWAP support enabling the use of the mobile web in 1999, the first European banks started to offer mobile banking on this platform to their customers .Mobile banking has until recently (2010) most often been performed via SMS or the Mobile Web. Apple'sinitial success with iPhone and the rapid growth of phones based on Google's Android (operating system)have led to increasing use of special client programs, called apps, downloaded to the mobile device. Mobile B anking Services Mobile banking can offer services such as the following: Account Information 1. Mini-statements and checking of account history 2. Alerts on account activity or passing of set thresholds 3. Monitoring of term deposits 4. Access to loan statements 5. Access to card statements . Mutual funds / equity statements 7. Insurance policy management 8. Pension plan management 9. Status on cheque, stop payment on cheque 10. Ordering cheque books 11. Balance checking in the account 12. Recent transactions 13. Due date of payment (functionality for stop, change and deleting of payments) 14. PIN provision, Change of PIN and reminder over the Internet 15. Blocking of (lost, stolen) cards Payments, Deposits, Withdrawals, and Transfers 1. Domestic and international fund transfers 2. Micro-payment handling 3. Mobile recharging 4. Commercial payment processing 5. Bill payment processing . Peer to Peer payments 7. Withdrawal at banking agent 8. Deposit at banking agent A specific sequen ce of SMS messages will enable the system to verify if the client has sufficient funds in his or her wallet and authorize a deposit or withdrawal transaction at the agent. When depositing money, the merchant receives cash and the system credits the client's bank account or mobile wallet. In the same way the client can also withdraw money at the merchant: through exchanging sms to provide authorization, the merchant hands the client cash and debits the merchant's account. Investments 1.Portfolio management services 2. Real-time stock quotes 3. Personalized alerts and notifications on security prices Support 1. Status of requests for credit, including mortgage approval, and insurance coverage 2. Check (cheque) book and card requests 3. Exchange of data messages and email, including complaint submission and tracking 4. ATM Location Content Services 1. General information such as weather updates, news 2. Loyalty-related offers 3. Location-based services Based on a survey conducted by Fo rrester, mobile banking will be attractive mainly to the younger, more â€Å"tech-savvy† customer segment.A third of mobile phone users say that they may consider performing some kind of financial transaction through their mobile phone. But most of the users are interested in performing basic transactions such as querying for account balance and making bill payment. ELECTRONIC FUNDS TRANSFER Electronic funds transfer or EFT is the electronic exchange or transfer of money from one account to another, either within a single financial institution or across multiple institutions, through computer-based systems. The term is used for a number of different concepts: Cardholder-initiated transactions, where a cardholder makes use of a payment card * Direct deposit payroll payments for a business to its employees, possibly via a payroll service bureau * Direct debit payments, sometimes called electronic checks, for which a business debits the consumer's bank accounts for payment for g oods or services * Electronic bill payment in online banking, which may be delivered by EFT or paper check * Transactions involving stored value of electronic money, possibly in a private currency * Wire transfer via an international banking network (carries a higher fee in North America) * Electronic Benefit Transfer In 1978 U. S. Congress passed the Electronic Funds Transfer Act to establish the rights and liabilities of consumers as well as the responsibilities of all participants in EFT activities in the United States. RTGSReal time gross settlement systems (RTGS) are funds transfer systems where transfer of money or securities[1] takes place from one bank to another on a â€Å"real time† and on â€Å"gross† basis. Settlement in â€Å"real time† means payment transaction is not subjected to any waiting period. The transactions are settled as soon as they are processed. â€Å"Gross settlement† means the transaction is settled on one to one basis withou t bunching or netting with any other transaction. Once processed, payments are final and irrevocable. Fees for RTGS vary from bank to bank. RBI has prescribed upper limit for the fees which can be charged by all banks both for NEFT and RTGS.Both the remitting and receiving must have Core banking in place to enter into RTGS transactions. Core Banking enabled banks and branches are assigned an Indian Financial System Code (IFSC) for RTGS and NEFT purposes. This is an eleven digit alphanumeric code and unique to each branch of bank. The first four alphabets indicate the identity of the bank and remaining seven numerals indicate a single branch. This code is provided on the cheque books, which are required for transactions along with recipient's account number. RTGS is a large value (minimum value of transaction should be Rs 2,00,000) funds transfer system whereby financial intermediaries can settle interbank transfers for their own account as well as for their customers.The system effe cts final settlement of interbank funds transfers on a continuous, transaction-by-transaction basis throughout the processing day. Customers can access the RTGS facility between 9 am to 4:30 pm on week days and 9 am to 1:30 pm on Saturday. However, the timings that the banks follow may vary depending on the customer timings of the bank branches. Banks could use balances maintained under the cash reserve ratio (CRR) and the intra-day liquidity (IDL) to be supplied by the central bank, for meeting any eventuality arising out of the real time gross settlement (RTGS). The RBI fixed the IDL limit for banks to three times their net owned fund (NOF). The IDL will be charged at Rs 25 per transaction entered into by the bank on theRTGS platform. The marketable securities and treasury billswill have to be placed as collateral with a margin of five per cent. However, the apex bank will also impose severe penalties if the IDL is not paid back at the end of the day. National Electronic Fund Tran sfer National Electronic Fund Transfer (NEFT) is an online system for transferring funds of Indian financial institution (especially banks). There is no minimum limit for fund transfer in NEFT system. DEBIT CARDS A debit card (also known as a bank card or check card) is a plastic card that provides the cardholder electronic access to his or her bank account/s at a financial institution.Some cards have a stored value with which a payment is made, while most relay a message to the cardholder's bank to withdraw funds from a designated account in favor of the payee's designated bank account. The card can be used as an alternative payment method to cash when making purchases. In some cases, the cards are designed exclusively for use on the Internet, and so there is no physical card. In many countries the use of debit cards has become so widespread that their volume of use has overtaken or entirely replaced the check and, in some instances, cash transactions. Like credit cards, debit card s are used widely for telephone and Internet purchases. However, unlike credit cards, the funds paid using a debit card are transferred immediately from the bearer's bank account, instead of having the bearer pay back the money at a later date.Debit cards usually also allow for instant withdrawal of cash, acting as the ATM card for withdrawing cash and as a check guarantee card. Merchants may also offer cashback facilities to customers, where a customer can withdraw cash along with their purchase. Online Debit System Online debit cards require electronic authorization of every transaction and the debits are reflected in the user’s account immediately. The transaction may be additionally secured with the personal identification number (PIN) authentication system and some online cards require such authentication for every transaction, essentially becoming enhanced automatic teller machine(ATM) cards.One difficulty in using online debit cards is the necessity of an electronic au thorization device at the point of sale (POS) and sometimes also a separate PINpad to enter the PIN, although this is becoming commonplace for all card transactions in many countries. Overall, the online debit card is generally viewed as superior to the offline debit card because of its more secure authentication system and live status, which alleviates problems with processing lag on transactions that may only issue online debit cards. Some on-line debit systems are using the normal authentication processes of Internet banking to provide real-time on-line debit transactions. The most notable of these are Ideal and POLi. Offline Debit SystemOffline debit cards have the logos of major credit cards (for example, Visa or MasterCard) or major debit cards (for example, Maestro in the United Kingdom and other countries, but not the United States) and are used at the point of sale like a credit card (with payer's signature). This type of debit card may be subject to a daily limit, and/or a maximum limit equal to the current/checking account balance from which it draws funds. Transactions conducted with offline debit cards require 2–3 days to be reflected on users’ account balances. In some countries and with some banks and merchant service organizations, a â€Å"credit† or offline debit transaction is without cost to the purchaser beyond the face value of the transaction, while a small fee may be charged for a â€Å"debit† or online debit transaction (although it is often absorbed by the retailer).Other differences are that online debit purchasers may opt to withdraw cash in addition to the amount of the debit purchase (if the merchant supports that functionality); also, from the merchant's standpoint, the merchant pays lower fees on online debit transaction as compared to â€Å"credit† (offline) debit transaction. Prepaid debit cards Prepaid debit cards, also called reloadable debit cards or reloadable prepaid cards, are often used for recurring payments. The payer loads funds to the cardholder's card account. Prepaid debit cards use either the offline debit system or the online debit system to access these funds. Particularly for companies with a large number of payment recipients abroad, prepaid debit cards allow the delivery of international payments without the delays and fees associated with international checks and bank transfers.Providers include Caxton FX prepaid cards, Escape prepaid cards, Travelex prepaid cards and TransCash prepaid Visa cards. Whereas, web-based services such as stock photography websites (istockphoto), outsourced services (oDesk),money transfer services (Western Union) and affiliate networks (MediaWhiz) have all started offering prepaid debit cards for their contributors/freelancers/vendors. Advantages of debit cards a. A consumer who is not credit worthy and may find it difficult or impossible to obtain a credit card can more easily obtain a debit card, allowing him/her to make plastic transactions. For example, legislation often prevents minors from taking out debt, which includes the use of a credit card, but not online debit card transactions. b.For most transactions, a check card can be used to avoid check writing altogether. Check cards debit funds from the user's account on the spot, thereby finalizing the transaction at the time of purchase, and bypassing the requirement to pay a credit card bill at a later date, or to write an insecure check containing the account holder's personal information. c. Like credit cards, debit cards are accepted by merchants with less identification and scrutiny than personal checks, thereby making transactions quicker and less intrusive. Unlike personal checks, merchants generally do not believe that a payment via a debit card may be later dishonored. d.Unlike a credit card, which charges higher fees and interest rates when a cash advance is obtained, a debit card may be used to obtain cash from an ATM or a PIN-based t ransaction at no extra charge, other than a foreign ATM fee. Disadvantages of debit cards a. Use of a debit card is not usually limited to the existing funds in the account to which it is linked, most banks allow a certain threshold over the available bank balance which can cause overdraft fees if the users transaction does not reflect available balance. b. Many banks are now charging over-limit fees or non-sufficient funds fees based upon pre-authorizations, and even attempted but refused transactions by the erchant (some of which may be unknown until later discovery by account holder). c. Many merchants mistakenly believe that amounts owed can be â€Å"taken† from a customer's account after a debit card (or number) has been presented, without agreement as to date, payee name, amount and currency, thus causing penalty fees for overdrafts, over-the-limit, amounts not available causing further rejections or overdrafts, and rejected transactions by some banks. d. In some countr ies debit cards offer lower levels of security protection than credit cards. [9] Theft of the users PIN using skimming devices can be accomplished much easier with a PIN input than with a signature-based credit transaction.However, theft of users' PIN codes using skimming devices can be equally easily accomplished with a debit transaction PIN input, as with a credit transaction PIN input, and theft using a signature-based credit transaction is equally easy as theft using a signature-based debit transaction. e. In many places, laws protect the consumer from fraud much less than with a credit card. While the holder of a credit card is legally responsible for only a minimal amount of a fraudulent transaction made with a credit card, which is often waived by the bank, the consumer may be held liable for hundreds of dollars, or even the entire value of fraudulent debit transactions. The consumer also has a shorter time (usually just two days) to report such fraud to the bank in order to be eligible for such a waiver with a debit card,[9] whereas with a credit card, this time may be up to 60 days.A thief who obtains or clones a debit card along with its PIN may be able to clean out the consumer's bank account, and the consumer will have no recourse. f. An automated teller machine (ATM), also known as a Cash Point, Cash Machine or sometimes a Hole in the Wall in British English, is a computerised telecommunications device that provides the clients of a financial institution with access to financial transactions in a public space without the need for a cashier, human clerk or bank teller. ATMs are known by various other names including automatic banking machine, cash machine, and various regional variants derived from trademarks on ATM systems held by particular banks. g.On most modern ATMs, the customer is identified by inserting a plastic ATM card with a magnetic stripe or a plastic smart card with a chip, that contains a unique card number and some security informa tion such as an expiration date or CVVC (CVV). Authentication is provided by the customer entering a personal identification number (PIN). h. Using an ATM, customers can access their bank accounts in order to make cash withdrawals,credit card cash advances, and check their account balances as well as purchase prepaid cellphone credit. If the currency being withdrawn from the ATM is different from that which the bank account is denominated in (e. g. Withdrawing Japanese Yen from a bank account containing US Dollars), the money will be converted at a wholesale exchange rate. Thus, ATMs often provide the best possible exchange rate for foreign travelers and are heavily used for this purpose as well Alternative uses Two NCR Personas 84 ATMs at a bank inJersey dispensing two types of pound sterling banknotes: Bank of England noteson the left, and States of Jersey notes on the right Although ATMs were originally developed as just cash dispensers, they have evolved to include many other ba nk-related functions. In some countries, especially those which benefit from a fully integrated cross-bank ATM network (e. g. Multibanco in Portugal), ATMs include many functions which are not directly related to the management of one's own bank account, such as: 1. Deposit currency recognition, acceptance, and recycling[61][62] 2. Paying routine bills, fees, and taxes (utilities, phone bills, social security, legal fees, taxes, etc. ) 3. Printing bank statements 4. Updating passbooks 5. Loading monetary value into stored value cards 6. Purchasing 7. Postage stamps. 8. Lottery tickets 9. Train tickets 10. Concert tickets 11. Movie tickets 12. Shopping mall gift certificates. 13. Games and promotional features 14. Fastloans 15. CRM at the ATM 16. Cheque Processing Module 17. Adding pre-paid cell phone / mobile phone credit.Increasingly banks are seeking to use the ATM as a sales device to deliver pre approved loans and targeted advertising using products such as ITM (the Intelligent Teller Machine) from Aptra Relate from NCR. ATMs can also act as an advertising channel for companies to advertise their own products or third-party products and services. In Canada, ATMs are called guichets automatiques in French and sometimes â€Å"Bank Machines† in English. The Interac shared cash network does not allow for the selling of goods from ATMs due to specific security requirements for PIN entry when buying goods. CIBC machines in Canada, are able to top-up the minutes on certain pay as you go phones. TELEPHONE BANKINGTelephone banking is a service provided by a financial institution, which allows its customers to perform transactions over the telephone. Most telephone banking services use an automated phone answering system with phone keypad response or voice recognition capability. To guarantee security, the customer must first authenticate through a numeric or verbal password or through security questions asked by a live representative (see below). With the ob vious exception of cash withdrawals and deposits, it offers virtually all the features of an automated teller machine: account balance information and list of latest transactions, electronic bill payments, funds transfers between a customer'saccounts, etc.Usually, customers can also speak to a live representative located in a call centre or a branch, although this feature is not always guaranteed to be offered 24/7. In addition to the self-service transactions listed earlier, telephone banking representatives are usually trained to do what was traditionally available only at the branch: loan applications, investment purchases and redemptions, chequebook orders, debit cardreplacements, change of address, etc. Banks which operate mostly or exclusively by telephone are known as phone banks. They also help modernise the user by using special technology. A credit card balance transfer is the transfer of the balance (the money) in a credit card account to an account held at another credit cardcompany.This process is actively encouraged by almost all credit card issuers as a means to attract new customers. Such an arrangement is attractive to the consumer because the new bank or credit card issuer will offer incentives such as a low interest or interest-free period, loyalty points or some such other device or combination of incentives. It is also attractive to the credit card company which uses this process to gain that new customer, and of course detrimental to the prior credit card company. An order of payments for every credit card specifies which balance(s) will be paid first. In nearly all cases payments apply to lowest-rate balances first – highest-rate last.Any balance under a teaser rate or fixed rate will be paid off sooner than any purchases or cash advances (which usually have the highest APR). By avoiding making purchases or taking cash advances altogether, the borrower can ensure they maintain the full benefits of the original balance transfer. Th e process is extremely fast and can be concluded within a matter of hours in some cases. Automated services exist to help facilitate such balance transfers. Other similar services do exist, but they may not be free to use. USES OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN BANKS Information Technology uses in Banking sector: – †¢Business banking †¢Retail banking †¢Banking technology †¢Banking environment †¢Card Market Business banking:BMI-Tec Knowledge has been publishing their annual report on Business Electronic Banking for the past 13 years. The report provides valuable year on year trend analysis for the major banks in South Africa. There are two parallel research objectives of the publication, to report on business banking trends and more specific information on each of the electronic banking products offered by the banks. Each year, the questionnaire used for the research process retains a generic core but incorporates changes that reflect the ever changing bank ing environment and the related impact of technology. The research is focused on business banking and specifically for companies that use an online or electronic banking product in their ay-to-day administration of their business banking administration. The key area of segmentation for this report is by the four major banks in South Africa: Absa, First National Bank, Nedbank and Standard Bank. Other areas of segmentation include size of company by employees and annual turnover and whether these companies are single banked or multi banked. Retail banking: Understanding the financial delivery channels BMI-T has conducted a recent benchmarking study to highlight external expertise and knowledge that is currently available in the ATM and SST environment. From this collated information, the client was able will be able to benchmark their own operations against these parameters.This study assisted the client in identifying and determining the current and potential best practices around AT Ms and to see where they are currently placed in this context. The scope of the research covered both local and international perspectives with the international perspective be segmented further by a split between Africa in comparison with the Rest of the World and South Africa Business Electronic Banking in the Small to Medium Business sector BMI-Tec Knowledge has been publishing their annual report on Business Electronic Banking in the corporate sector for the past 13 years. This new report, Business electronic banking in the SMB sector will be a parallel report in order to fully understand both markets; corporates and the SMB sector.There are two parallel research objectives of the publication, to report on business banking trends in the small to medium business sector and provide more specific information on each of the electronic banking products offered by the banks. The research is focused on business banking and specifically for companies that use an online or electronic ban king product in their day-to-day administration of their business banking administration. The key area of segmentation for this report is the four major banks in South Africa: Absa, First National Bank, Nedbank and Standard Bank. Other areas of segmentation include size of company by employees and annual turnover and whether these companies are single banked or multi banked. Multi-Channel Banking for Retail Financial Services 2005: BMI-T conducts research in the financial delivery channels to the retail market.This research covers the following issues: †¢The optimum balance between customer experience and lower costs, †¢International overview of financial delivery channels and the road to multi-channel integration, †¢Trends and market drivers and/or inhibitors that have driven the changes in global banks, †¢South African comparison of financial delivery channels and their related offerings from the banks, †¢Comparison of pricing and products and services tha t are available on each channel from each financial provider, †¢Number of customer points such as ATMs, †¢Number of banking branches and level of change and expected growth for the future. Research to test the future for High-value-low frequency channels or low-value-high frequency channels, current and future usage patterns of financial delivery channels from the South African retail customers (which channels, frequency, timing and for which transactions plus trend analysis with past annual data). Banking technology: South Africa is in many ways a global leader in the adoption and use of technology to improve competitiveness and de

Promote equality and Inclusion in health and social Essay

Diversity, Equality and Inclusion. Diversity Diversity is the difference between individuals and groups. This can be the differences in culture, nationality, ethnic origin, religion, beliefs, sexual orientation, gender, age, social class or abilities. Equality Equality is the promotion of individual’s rights; it is giving the individual choice and opportunity. It is giving the individual respect and treating them fair. As a health and social care worker you should provide care and support to meet the own individuals needs and preferences. see more:inclusion in health and social care Inclusion In health and Social care Inclusion is when the individuals are at the centre of planning and support. An example of this is providing person centred care plans and ensure that the individual was part of putting this together. Discrimination and Inclusive Practice There are many different forms of discrimination, ‘direct discrimination’, ‘indirect discrimination’, and ‘institutional discrimination’. Discrimination can lead to individuals being treated less favourably than others, losing chances for opportunity, become labelled and be stereotyped and can cause a loss of self-esteem. Inclusive practice promotes equality and supports diversity. In health and social care settings there are policies and procedures that promote inclusive practice and challenge discrimination, they promote rights, empower individuals and remove any barriers restricting them. Individual’s differences should be valued and celebrated. Working in an Inclusive way. In health and Social care there are legislations, codes of practice and policies in the workplace setting relating to equality, diversity and  discrimination. These include the human rights act 1998, the disability discrimination act 2005, Special educational needs and disability act 2001, Race relations (Amendment) act 2000, The equality act 2010, and the European convention on human rights. The way you interact with an individual can show whether you respect that individuals beliefs, culture, values and preferences. In your workplace setting, whether you are interacting with colleagues or service users it is important that you use active listening and is helpful if you have a knowledge of individuals, for example beliefs, cultures, values and preferences. Be able to maintain and individual’s confidentiality where appropriate and communicate in the individuals prefer method. Promote diversity, equality and Inclusion An example of Inclusive practice is encouraging choices, independence, empowering them as individuals and removing any barriers to access. Promote equality and rights, for example opportunity’s should be provided and the access according to the individuals needs. As a health and social care worker it is important that you can recognise discrimination and challenge it. Recognise stereotypes in attitudes or written materials and understand and be able to adapt own beliefs and attitudes. You should know how to report concerns regarding discrimination according to own policy and procedures.

Death in Popular Culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Death in Popular Culture - Essay Example Today the type of media one uses and is exposed to defines the personality of the individual (Kearl 85). The media is subtle in its approach and yet so sublime in its execution that today it is the media that decides who is a hero and who is a foe. Because of its speed and interactivity today people use media to give meaning to the world objects and make perceptions about various phenomena. Media has the power of accentuating paltry issues and making them appear ever more significant to the masses. The stark imprints of media penetrate into our minds and shape our thoughts and behaviors and this is ultimately reflected in the society. This entire process along with its affects on the society is known as â€Å"popular culture† today (McKenzie 96). The popular culture in this contemporary world drives our thoughts and perceptions of different concepts in this world. Today we are subjected to movies, news, music, internet, games and a lot more under the banner of media. On the an terior media is of great help and use for us but on the posterior media is driving our opinions and have made our life materialistic and consequently we have become more hedonistic and pleasure loving, for instance we are least concerned today about the sheer truths and blunt realities of life. We hardly care about the deaths occurring in Africa of hunger or people dying of natural or human disasters in any part of the world. All we care about is us and the maximization of our pleasures. With this newly form or guise that we as human have entered ourselves into has actually served to distant us from the love of God and the meaning of life. Similarly popular media has also defined death and its meaning to us in the modern age. This will be discussed throughout the length of this paper in light of the views of different philosophers and thinkers. Thesis Statement Popular culture has transformed the meaning of death in the contemporary world, making death appear more materialistic and fascinating than meaningful and sublime. Kearl’s stance on the subject Kearl’s work is based on the impact that media has made on the people’s perception of death. Interestingly Kearl was keen enough to identify a certain shift in the media’s dealing with the subject of death after the World War II, since the Baby Boom age. Violence, murders and thrill since have been the new modes of entertainment used by directors for silver and golden screens. According to Kearl’s research an average American by the age of 16 have witnessed approximately 18,000 murders on different forms of media. This is where Kearl quantifies the impact of media on the perception of death among humans. Death has been dramatized so frequently and creatively that it has not remain something sedate and imminent. In fact media and media actors have made death appear to be an event, an extraordinary event. This can be understood by the example of fans of Sylvester Stallone, they se e him on the big screen so often that when they see him in reality, live, face to face they do not treat him like any other human, in fact they treat him like a super human and hence their reaction and behavior changes. Same is the treatment of death in today’s society under the influence of media. People hardly know of death’s face value all they know about this phenomenon is unnatural, unreal and conveyed through media. Since media incorporate internet, TV, print and all forms of communication tools therefore the concept of death carried by each

Human resource- motivation at sales company Essay

Human resource- motivation at sales company - Essay Example Statistics indicate that sales persons are motivated by tangible rewards as well as cash rewards. They acknowledge that cash do help them get the bills paid but it does not keep sales people going (32%). In fact 79% respondents to an Incentive Federation survey indicate that they find non-cash rewards more effective in motivating them achieve sales and marketing goals than cash rewards. Tangible rewards increase performance by 22% while team incentives increase performance by 44%. Moreover, sales people are more enticed by incentive programs including give-aways, travel opportunities, privileges, club membership or be part of the company’s elite group. Although companies have the potential to improve their organizational performances, they are at times unaware of the tools available to them. For most organizations, motivation is compensation; it is cash rewards given out to employees as incentives. However, this is not the appropriate or effective strategy for increasing employee performance, changing their attitude or even motivating them, especially for a sales workforce whose motivational factors differ from other employees. Organizations need to focus on stoking sales team spirit according to Greco (1994). Compensation is not the only motivating factor (Smith 2008). The University of Michigan identified communication as the key to understanding employees motives and a means to responding to their needs (Ford, McLaughlin, and Newstrom, 2003). Representatives need statistics to boost their performance. Statistics to track sales and profits include traffic, average sale, closing ratio, inventory, pricing trends, prospects lists, client information, industry statistics etc. Cash rewards are unpopular as compared to tangible rewards. Positive incentives which can be integrated at the workplace to motivate sales team include recognition program, awards, and respect for contribution. Marchetti (2006) indicates

Business Plan Reflective report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business Plan Reflective report - Essay Example People now seek to consume food as they shop down the town streets. We had a brain-storming session where we invited some friends over who are not from this industry. We wanted different perspectives and wanted to challenge our own assumptions. People sought something different from the standard menus of Mcdonald’s and Burger King. At the same time people also wanted the freedom to choose their salads and fillings. This immediately led us to the concept of Subway and then we were overwhelmed. We decided to combine the concept of Subway with the road-side concept but we would not restrict ourselves to sandwiches. We decided to include several snack-based food items. We believe this would create a point of differentiation, which according to Porter can provide competitive advantage. This prompted us to fill the gap and set up a fast food joint in Kingston, which has very few such outlets. We then started evaluating where we have the necessary skills and expertise. We found that all four members of our team for the proposed venture have sufficient experience in the fast food industry and have served in various capacities with renowned corporations. The formation of the team itself can affect subsequent performance (Owens, Mannix & Neale, 1998) and hence we made sure we were a team that was comfortable to work with. To ensure high level of effectiveness, we ensured that each member contributed to necessary technical skills, knowledge, expertise and ability. This was because we recognized that each individual would be able to contribute their knowledge or expertise to solve a jointly owned problem which would be difficult for an individual to solve on his own (McGreevy, 2006). We had defined individual roles, and rules of interaction as well as an agreed system of decision making, as this would help enhance learning for the team members as well as others in the organization (Macneil, 2000). While each member of our team contributed diverse skills and knowledg e, we also ensured that we shared the same values, beliefs and attitudes which could facilitate coordination and communication. However, we soon realized that setting up a business is far different from designing and thinking of a business plan. We first tried to think whether we really needed a business plan. We decided to prepare a business plan as this would help us evaluate the business opportunity (Chwolka & Raith, 2012). Besides, we needed external funding and investors need to see a business plan before they decide to invest (Mason & Stark, 2004). We knew we had the resources such as technical know-how and experience but we realized that putting our thoughts on paper would help us understand whether we can achieve what we expect to. Ideas were fragmented since none of us had experience as entrepreneurs before this and we needed to assimilate and evaluate our thoughts. A business plan was just the right tool to organize out thoughts on paper. A business plan can be informal or a formalized plan, and is essential for both internal and external purposes. It defines how the venture would operate in the current business environment but we also needed to evaluate performance after five years because we planned to expand in about five years, when more funding would be needed. Business plan is a strategic planning document that serves to guide the business and also act as a monitoring device as the business progresses (Richbell, Watts & Wardle, 2006). Presenting the plan has helped us

How high street fashion brands are picking up on trends through Dissertation

How high street fashion brands are picking up on trends through advertising and celebrity endorsements - Dissertation Example Fashion has become much more accessible, the process from catwalk to high street taking a maximum of 9 weeks which means that consumers are becoming allot more trend – savvy. With the many styles that are available, one of the core ways in which consumers are making decisions on style is based upon what they see celebrities wearing. Therefore, brand managers have had to adapt. Choosing the right celebrity will greatly affect the success of a fashion product so it is an important decision for a brand, usually based on many qualities, such as appeal, looks, popularity or even just a fantasy figure. In today’s highly competitive fashion marke high street brands such as Topshop and Miss Selfridge are at loggerheads when it comes to products, each having a similar product to that of the rival. It is harder for one brand to gain quintessential advantage; such as advertising, service, promise of trust and even price factors. A key celebrity endorsement will take tip the compet itive edge from one to the other. Advertising seems to be the best platform from which brands compete, which requires hiring the best advertising agencies in order to get the biggest and best celebrities to advertise for brands. The company needs to invest in a good creative agency, a large enough promotional budget and a huge star to endorse the brand to ensure success over the competing brand. Brand communication delivered by celebrities and famous personalities generate a higher appeal, attention and recall within the fashion industry than those executed by non celebrities or models. The attraction to the celebrity creates a quick message that can reach the consumer with an impact that is all too essential in today’s competitive market. Because of the core importance of celebrity endorsement, the different models applied by brands used to achieve the full potential of such endorsements, highlight the need for a convergence between the pragmatic and theoretical approaches o f brand building and effective advertising. The opportunity and importance of a celebrity brand match and the various roles played them as brand associates shows the momentum this strategy has gained over the last few years. Celebrity endorsements offer the opportunity to maintain the contact with potential customers, sometimes without them even being aware of the advertising aim. Advertising concepts such as ‘positioning by association’ ‘diminishing celebrity utility’ and the multiple effecters which show the triangular relationship between the brand, the consumer and the celebrity provide a framework in which to create an understanding of the importance of choosing the right celebrity to endorse a brand in order to add to the mythology of the product. When a brand is created for a company, more than just a method of selling a product is put into place. Brand identity is the emotional context in which a consumer will form a relationship with a product or p roduct name. In fashion, the way in which the product is identified with one celebrity or another can make or break a brand. Juicy Couture did no advertising during the first few years of their emergence onto the fashion scene. However, through the power of celebrity endorsement alone, through getting their track suits on people with highly visibly branding of their own through their celebrity, such as Madonna and Jennifer Lopez, the brand was able to make a powerful mark on the fashion industry (Steele 2010, p. 129). Without large amounts of spending, a fashion entity can get their products onto the right people when they are getting photographed by paparazzi and create a powerful buzz

Discuss Nurse Practice Act related to abandonment Essay

Discuss Nurse Practice Act related to abandonment - Essay Example Every state in America has its own version of NPA and there may be differences in the application and interpretation of a law for a specific Nursing Board. However, it is important to note every state does not include the patient abandonment in its version of NPA. Patient abandonment is usually safeguarded through Business and Professions Code, disciplinary actions, Common Law practices and administrative legislation prevalent is a state or country. â€Å"On the other hand, not all laws governing the practice of nursing are found in "the Act" or its' regulations. Legal obligations common to various licensed healthcare professionals will apply to nurses.† (Erickson, p. 1, 2006). There is no concrete definition of abandonment because it can take forms and shapes, which are required to be interpreted within an available legal framework. In some cases, it may occur in denial of extra shift duty or an assigned task. However, nursing is a serious obligation either it is a normal shi ft duty or an extra one. â€Å"Once a nurse has accepted a patient assignment, he or she is accountable for providing competent care to the assigned patients.† (Lewis, p. 118, 2001).

Advantages of Single life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Advantages of Single life - Essay Example A single person tends to consume lesser food as compared to a whole family or a couple. Smaller housing facility can be rented or purchased due to the need of lesser space for a single individual. Education has become expensive around the world and major portions of married couples’ incomes are consumed to support the education expenses of their children. According to a statistic quoted by Riper in his article; single people are able to save around 5% of their monthly salary on average. This figure is significantly higher than the married couples who are not able to save anything beyond their retirement funds. Single people tend to be safe from numerous causes of stress and tensions in their lives. The American Institute of Stress verified that stress can cause various types of health problems (America’s No.1 Health Problems). Married people tend to stay stressed if they have negative relations with their partners or have increasing financial problems to support their households. Single people tend to be free from such worries as they have the option of leaving their negative relations and starting a new, healthier relation with the individual of their choice. Negative relations between spouse cause great stress to the participating partners, as well as their children. Single people are able to invest more time and energy in the growth of their professional lives and careers. They have the freedom to take up job opportunities according to their requirements and passion. Married women are generally expected to attend the children and household chores more than the men in the societies, due to which their careers are not considered as a priority. Likewise, married men might not be able to take up opportunities that might require frequent movement from one city to the other; single individuals can easily avail such opportunities since they are the

The way that law interacts with law enforcement Essay

The way that law interacts with law enforcement - Essay Example Criminal Justice System â€Å"A criminal justice system is a set of legal and social institutions for enforcing the criminal law in accordance with a defined set of procedural rules and limitations.† â€Å"The phrase criminal justice system refers to a collection of federal, state, and local public agencies that deal with the crime problem. These agencies process suspects, defendants, and convicted offenders and are interdependent insofar as the decisions of one agency affect other agencies. The basic framework of the system is provided by the legislative, judicial, and executive branches of government.† (Kirsten DeBarba) The system consists of the crime, the accused, the courts and then the jail where the accused is sent in case he is found guilty of committing the crime. It is the entire paradigm within which the focus lies on finding out the real culprit of the crime and involves various stages through which the accused is sent in order to determine the real cause of the crime committed. There is a certain criminal law which determines the entirety of the criminal justice system, and it is within the law through which the various bodies within the system work collectively. It has various sub-systems, and this paper shall be focussing on three broad categories and then identify the role of each and every body singularly. The bodies are as follows: 1. Law 2. Courts 3. Jail 4. Police Department 5. Prosecution and the Defence The above are broad categories within which the system is divided, and the paper shall focus on the relationship between law and the courts and jail on a collective basis. The paper shall compare each and every element exclusively with law and how it works in the real world. (What is Law Enforcement) Criminal Law: Let us first examine criminal law to understand the law behind curbing criminal activities, and how do we define such activities in the paradigm of criminal legislations. Criminal law has been designed to seek punish ment for the crimes which are committed by the citizens of the society, and it has a procedure code which allows for a process to take place in the lieu of providing justice. The law is designed in such a way that it allows for all the crimes which might be committed in the society to fall under its ambit. The law is only the beginning when it comes to curbing the crime, where it is just the starting point in the entire procedure to prevent the crime from happening. The law is a code which contains various clauses designed to punish the wrongdoer in each and every circumstance. (Law Enforcement and Crime) â€Å"Criminal law envelops the criminal procedure employed when charging, trying, sentencing and imprisoning defendants convicted of crimes, as well as regulation concerning how suspects are investigated, charged and tried. Criminal law is typically enforced by the government. The state, through a prosecutor, initiates the suit. Some subcategories of criminal law include Substant ive Criminal law; Criminal Procedure; and the special problems and issues arising in administration and enforcement of criminal justice.† (Crime and Law Enforcement) Courts The courts have a very specific role to play while dealing with law in criminal procedure. It is the duty of the court to be unbiased in its judgement and give both the parties a chance to be heard in essence. Courts usually listen to the prosecutor and the defence, and make their judgement

Hackers Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Hackers - Research Paper Example This research paper discusses the philosophy of justification of the end through its means. It highlights some of the laws that provide for the hacking process and explains their provisions on this process. The paper identifies the ethical aspect of hacking, whether the society considers it an ethical procedure or not. It also discusses the various perceptions people develop from various situations and how they handle them. It also explains how the society perceives hackers. It identifies the motivations hackers have when breaking into a computer system and relates their behavior to that of thieves in the society. It also describes the various defenses hackers use in order to justify their acts, such as claiming that information ought to be free. Finally, it discusses the negative impact of students hacking institutional systems in the name of acquiring cost-effective education. The hacking process in the society is a dangerous activity that the government should get rid of. This is because there are malicious hackers who break into an organization’s system in order to cause damage (Paul, p26). The crackers access, retrieve and interfere with a company’s data without any consent. The U.S has laws that forbid hacking, for example, the 18 U.S.C 1029, which prohibits any unauthorized access of secured systems. It however justifies the people who have the right cause of hacking, those whose intent is not of committing fraud. The 18 U.S.C 1030 prohibits any unauthorized access to the government systems. This law justifies authorized access but does not provide for people who have a moral intent (Legal Information Institute). There are however situations that may lead one to access systems without authorization in order to acquire essential data without committing fraud, for example in the literature work, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Larsson), Lisbeth broke some laws in order to retrieve information that would bring justice, which gave her credit f or the unlawful act. The society however has ethics that differentiate the right from the wrong. If the government made a law that justified the means through its end, there would be increased criminal levels in the society. Instances of theft would increase, as people would claim that they were carrying out the unlawful activity in order to feed his or her hungry family. The society, in all situations, should therefore justify the end through the means (Paul, p27). Although people have different perceptions of a situation, they tend to justify various acts that may have used the same means differently (Levy, p36). For example, if the government chose to eliminate theft by beheading thieves in public, the society would consider this as an immoral act. Even if the act would lower the theft cases, it would emphasis on the rights to life for any person irrespective of the acts. In this case, the means would justify the end. For the computer hackers, the society disregards the method th rough which they acquired information. The citizens regard them as intelligent people who safeguard the interest of the society. This is irrespective the law that provides for security in the computer systems of a company. This makes one law more important than the other and therefore, the society should formulate a uniform procedure of judging situations (Paul, p28). The society holds that the hackers develop the right judgment towards various issues in the society hence the geniuses can never base their perceptions and thoughts on the wrong facts and imagination (Levy, p38). However, not all perceptions that the hackers hold is always true. They may develop wrong judgment, which may lead to injustice in the world. In the movie Minority Report, the hackers access information that aids an agency in preventing the occurrence of a crime (Spielberg). If the society embraces this concept, the State would sentence many innocent people to prison. This is because the jury would pass judgme nt based on the thoughts the

A Preview Of The Twentieth Century Essay Example for Free

A Preview Of The Twentieth Century Essay History tells us so much that the essence of humanity would be of a void nature without it. We can safely say that history is the collective experience of humanity itself. Thus, a distortion made upon history is irreverence to our collective experience. If one distorts history, he/she changes humanity’s life story. There is a need to preserve history as it happened. From history we learn lessons and avoid doing things that lead us to our own destruction. Take for example the two world wars that happened, if a third world war happens, then we, humanity, did not learn and care at all about our own history. History distortions commonly happen in the ideological and political arena. These distortions kill human lives. Conflicts that happen in the Europe and the Middle East as well as in America are caused by differences on the way people view religion and faith. Infamous of these are bombings caused by Muslim fundamentalists. Hence, history should be taught as it happened. History should be taught with clarity and vividness. People are intelligent enough to discern between the good and bad events that happened. Respect given for each other’s perspective and ideology should be encouraged to avoid conflicts. An integration of history arriving at the closest description of events as they happen should be done taking into consideration the differences in the religious and political beliefs of different races. Research should be done in order to correct the mistakes made on writing history. Yet, the most important of these is respect. If people cannot agree on a particular issue of history, then their only option is to respect its other’s views. There is no other alternative, they must respect each other. History is what we are. If we distort our perception of history, we change our very lives’ meaning.

Critical Period for Language Acquisition Chomsky

Critical Period for Language Acquisition Chomsky Chomsky claimed that there was a critical period for language learning which was first proposed by Eric Lenneberg. He claimed, as Cook Newson (1996:301) explain, that there is a critical period during which the human mind is able to learn language; before or after this period language cannot be acquired in a natural fashion. Although the rare cases of feral children who had been deprived of first language in early childhood seems to support the idea of critical period but it is not known for definite if deprivation was the only reason for their language learning difficulties as Sampson (1997:37) points out, it is not certain if children in cases of extreme deprivation have trouble learning language because they have missed their so-called critical period or if it is because of the extreme trauma they have experienced.Although Chomsky was a very influential and successful nativist, Sampson (1997:159) claims his theories were given a helping hand by external circumstances. Behaviourist Theory and Chomskys Innatism Further, reasoning the success of these new nativist writers Sampson says When Chomsky originally spelled out an argument, the reader would assess it and might detect its fallacies; but when recent writers refer to something as having been established back in the 1960s-70s, most readers are likely to take this on trust, for lack of time and energy to check the sources.Finally, on the subject of nature vs. nurture debate, which so heavily involves Chomsky, it seems impossible to distinguish whether language is only acquired due to environmental exposure or simply due to innate faculties. From the evidence it seems that humans possess innate capabilities which enable linguistic development, but the correct environment, with exposure to adult language throughout the critical period, also seems to be necessary in order for a child to develop and become a proficient speaker. Singleton evaluates the scenario in these words, The one qualification that might be entered with regard to such evidence is that deprivation of language input during the phase in a childs life when cognitive development is at its most intense may have quite general psychological/cognitive effects, and that it may be these general effects that are reflected in later language development rather that effects relating specifically to a critical period for language (Singleton 1989, 54). The behaviourist theory is also contradicted by the fact that young children very often make intelligent mistakes as they learn a language. As they progress beyond the two-word stage, they begin to understand and try to express more complex concepts, such as plurality, past tense and negation. Mistakes such as sheeps, goed, and I no want to, are all formed from formulae in the English language. In the first case, the child has grasped the general rule that /s/ at word endings implies more than one, but has not yet distinguished irregularities. The same applies to the second; /ed/ is a regularised past tense ending. In the third instance, the child definitely understands the concept of negation, but cannot yet distinguish between the different forms of expressing it (such as do not, dont; will not, wont; no; none etc) or completely comprehend the complex syntax involved. (Foster-Cohen, 1999, 89) If children only learned through repetition and imitation, would they be able to produce u tterances with grammar applied that they would never have heard their parents use? Chomsky and the Language Acquisition Device (LAD) Therefore there must be more to a childs linguistic development than simply social factors. Theories suggesting that the human brain has a unique capacity for language which is genetic and exists from before birth include Chomsky and the Language Acquisition Device, Piaget and Cognitive theory and Lenneberg and the Critical Period. The Language Acquisition Devise (LAD), according to Chomsky, is an inborn mechanism facilitating the learning of language, consisting of neural wirings and brain structures unique to human beings. A child does not need to be taught language formally, but simply needs to be exposed to adult speech. This effortless discovery of the language system is due to LAD. Chomsky, 1986, 118) The four properties of LAD are: Ability to distinguish speech sounds from over environmental sounds Ability to organise linguistic events into various properties Knowledge that only a certain kind of linguistic system is possible Ability to engage in constant evaluation of developing linguistic systems, such as generating new sentences and selecting the correct tense. Chomsky argues that language develops in a uniform way, which is genetically determined, and that learning develops in an individual with the trigger of experience. The human brain is ready for language intake from birth, and exposure to adult speech activates it. An ancient experiment where an emperor ordered for a group of children to grow up in isolation with no exposure to language resulted in none of them developing language for communication. This shows that exposure to adult language is essential for linguistic development, as language will not appear without it. A childs language develops through hypothesis testing: deciding an utterance and trying it on parents. Through trial and error, their speech will eventually correspond to adult speech. Chomskys LAD theory therefore does tie in with the behaviourist theory, but maintains that language acquisition is much more complex then simply imitation because innate faculties are also involved. If language development is dependent on the environment triggering the LAD, what is it that determined how and when children learn what? Certainly, the same stages of linguistic acquisition occur for all children (i.e. holophrastic, two-word, telegraphic), in the same order and at roughly similar ages.Piagets Cognitive Theory identifies language as an element of knowledge acquisition. He believed that the growth of knowledge is a progressive construction of logically embedded structures replacing one another by a process of inclusion of lower, less powerful logical means into higher and more powerful ones up to adulthood. This means that childrens logic and thinking methods are originally different to adults. Piagets cognitive theory suggests language is one of many cognitive behaviours, and it emerges from cognitive development or learning to think and problem solve. However, this theory is contradicted by the cocktail party chatterer children. Observations of these children have suggested that an ability to cope with language structure is largely separate from general intelligence. They talk for the sake of talking and their sentences may not make sense. However, as the behaviourist theory might have suggested, they are not simply repeating phrases they have heard, because they make grammatical mistakes such as three tickets were gave out by a police last year which they would not have heard said. A theory which would explain why these cocktail party chatterers could be able to speak fluently even with a very low non-verbal I.Q. is Lennebergs Critical Period Theory. He considered language to be an example of maturationally controlled behaviour, like walking and sexual behaviour, which is genetically programmed to emerge at a particular stage in an individuals life. Learning is required, but cannot be significantly hastened by coaching. Aitchinson Reith tells us no external event or conscious decision causes it, and a regular sequence of milestones can be charted. When the brain is in this period, lateralisation occurs, when the two sides of the brain develop specialised functions. Lenneberg recognised that in an adult brain, language is found only in the left hemisphere, whereas in infancy it is more spread out, meaning the infant brain has equipotential. Feral Children Phenomenon So-called feral children, those that have had no exposure to language in their critical period have helped to credit Lennebergs theory. Genie is an example. She was kept in appallingly deprived conditions, with almost no social contact or exposure to language until she was found at age thirteen. Attempts were made to teach her language, but although she progressed to the two-word and three-word stages like most children, her lack of morphology was never remedied. She only grasped simple grammatical concepts. Had and gave where her only past tenses which were used rarely and her only auxiliary was be; never have or must. She never used the demonstratives there or it although there were attempts at the definite article the. Genie demonstrates that after the critical period, pragmatic skills can still be developed but the structural knowledge of language is lost. She suggests that a child must be exposed to language during the critical period, and that after puberty language acquisition cannot reach its normal end point. (Snow, Hoefnagel, 1978, 1116) This suggests that universal grammar is no longer operative as an LAD. About Genies case, De Villiers is of the opinion that It is unnecessary to explain that such circumstances did not leave Genie intact in body and mind. However, although she was malnourished, there was no evidence of physical abnormalities sufficient to account for her behaviour, for she had adequate hearing, vision and eye-hand coordination. She was severely disturbed emotionally, having frequent but silent tantrums, yet there were no other symptoms of childhood autism. The most likely explanation was the chronic social deprivation she had suffered for those twelve years (De Villiers De Villiers 1978, p.215) Critical Period and Language Acquisition What the critical period theory does fail to emphasise is the way in which children learn language, concentrating more on the scientific explanation for why they are able to. The fact that children definitely need exposure to adult speech in order to learn language has already been discussed. But the reasons that humans, as social animals, need language have not been covered by any of the previously mentioned theories. Through studying his own son, Halliday identified five main purposes children need language for. These functional frameworks can be distinguished from childrens utterances even before recognisable words can be articulated, i.e. in the childs proto-language. Interpersonal functions are when the child is increasing and extending his capacity for engaging linguistically with others, for opening and sustaining dialogue with them. These include Instrumental, to satisfy material needs, for example /na/ when requesting an object. This is the I want function of language. The regulatory function is used to control behaviour of others, such as /ee/ meaning do that again! This is the do what I say function of language. Ideological functions are the aspects of adult language systems concerned with giving shape to and expressing events and the external world, and also the internal world of consciousness. (Jackson Stockwell, 1996, 170) The heuristic function is where a child uses language to explore its environment, such as requesting the name of and object. (Harley, 1989, 166). This is the tell me why function of language. The personal function enables the child to communicate his identity by expressing pleasure or interest, for example /a/ for thats nice. This is the here I come function of language. Hallidays language functions propose that both proto-language and later linguistic development can be identified by frameworks. These frameworks are factors which are important for humans to establish relationships with others, satisfy material wishes and to find out about the environment in which they live. All of the theories discussed in this essay have their merits, because the reason humans learn language and the way in which they do so are determined by many factors. Humans do uniquely possess innate faculties which enable linguistic development, but the correct environment, with exposure to adult language throughout the critical period, must be present in order for a child to develop and become a proficient adult speaker. Lexical Development Lexical development also continues after puberty, and, according to some suggestions, may continue throughout our lives, as people are continually interested in learning new things (Singleton 1989, p.56). Diller (1971) points out that twelve year olds have a recognition of about 135,000 words, Harvard freshmen know about 200,000 words, the typical thirty year oold PhD student know about 2,500,000 words. Vocabulary development continues in a natural, almost unnoticed fashion as long as one lives and is interested in new things. There have been several studies that strongly support Lennebergs hypothesis. Among the most prominent are feral children. Feral children are persons that have been linguistically isolated. When they were found, most were unable to pick up on language abilities. These cases propose that there may be a critical age in which any child who has somehow missed out on learning a language will never fully master one. (Macwhinney, 2004, 910) Genie never learned proper grammar or sentence structure. Other cases of feral children include: Victor, the wild boy of Aveyron (who was found at age 11) and Kamala of Midnapore (who was found at age 8), both never learned language correctly either. Therefore, although Lennebergs hypothesis is not proven, feral children forcefully support it. Critical Period Hypothesis and Empirical Evaluation The Critical Period Hypothesis is further supported by experiments about second language acquisition. Lenneberg believed that the language acquisition device, like other biological functions, works successfully only when it is stimulated at the right time (p. 19). Aitchison (1998, p.88) goes for a general outcome by saying that young children who start signing early because of their deaf parents end up more proficient that those who have hearing parents. The Ildefonso case is probably used against the hypothesis of upper limit critical period because he has shown nearly full competence in sign language despite his late start which was far beyond puberty. Psycholinguistic, a branch of linguistics theory covers the cognitive process that discusses the process as how to generate a grammatical and meaningful sentence out of vocabulary and grammatical structure, as well as the process to make it possible to understand utterances, words, texts, etc. It concentrates in the internal process of acquiring language and their effect on language learning. Whereas, adults can perform and develop many aspects of new ways of language and vocabulary (Singleton:1989,p.55) One internal factor is the development of Interlanguage, which is developed by learners of a second language who have not become fully proficient, but are only approximating the target language. Learners use some features of their first language during speaking and writing and they also create their own innovations; it is a system based upon the best attempt for learners to provide order and structure to the linguistic stimuli surrounding them. Interlanguage is particularly based on the learners experience on the target language. The learner creates an interlanguage using different learning strategies such as language transfer, overgeneralization and simplification. Language learning acquisition is a gradual process where errors will be unavoidable, but learners will slowly and tediously succeed in establishing closer and closer approximations to the system used by native speakers. Educators can give appropriate feedback after checking learners interlanguage, and assure learners that making mistakes is a procedure of development from the mother tongue to the second language. Universal Grammar Orientation Universal Grammar is another theory that explains failure of second language competence. It is said that Universal Grammar is a natural unconscious ability present at birth, that is a knowledge of grammar. This does not imply that a person does not make mistakes, but that they do make mistakes but irregular types of errors, and somehow a person has the ability to accept these errors and re-apply them. The set of grammatical rules are learned through conditioning, meaning that if a person when learning their mother language never heard anyone make mistakes, then he or she learns it that way. With Universal Grammar set in place at birth, the person is able to take on whichever language he or she is exposed to, as all languages have common elements and are inter-adaptable. This theory does not state that all human languages have the same grammar, or that all humans are encoded with a structure that underlies all surface grammatical expressions of each and every specific human language. But it implies that Universal Grammar suggests a set of rules that would explain how a person acquires their language or how they construct valid sentences of their language. (Chomsky, 1972, 37) This theory explains that grammar is the system of principles, conditions, and rules that are properties of all human language. Second Language Learning And Critical Period Learners begin by transferring the sounds and meaning, words order into the learning of the second language. By doing this an obstruction of the second language acquisition starts to raise, the learner starts to confuse the grammatical rules of the first language with the second language creating an incorrect language learning process. When learning a second language, a learner uses this language transfer concept as a strategy to have an uncomplicated language learning process. The learner uses parts of the analysis of one language in order to manage with the unclear grammatical rules of the target language. Learners when presenting or expressing their ideas, opinions and statements in the target language, tend to consider and apply the same grammatical structures of their first language; this transferring interferes with the proper application of the grammatical structure of the target language. The Monitor Model is another likely explanation for this second language incompetence. T his theory is characterized of five hypotheses. The Acquisition-Learning Hypothesis involves that there are two independent systems of second language performance; acquisition is the result of a subconscious process similar to childrens mother language acquisition and requires life-like second language interaction, which concentrates on communication rather than accuracy. On the other hand, learning occurs through formal instruction and includes a conscious process, which results in knowledge of the target language. Learned knowledge permits learners to read and listen more so that the acquisition is effectual. The Natural Order Hypothesis; suggests that just as first language learners, second language learners seem to acquire the characteristics of the target language in an obvious order. Contrary to intuition, the rules which are easier to state and to learn are not necessarily the first to acquire. It is observed that the natural order is independent of the order in which rules have been learned in class. Monitor Hypothesis The Monitor Hypothesis; states that a learners learned system acts as a monitor to what they are producing. In other words, while only the acquired system is able to produce spontaneous speech, the learned system is used to check what is being spoken, this occurs before or after the interaction is made, but not at the same time. The interlocutor therefore monitors their spontaneous speech using what they have learned. The Monitor Model then predicts faster initial progress by adults than children, as adults use their monitor when producing statements in the target language before having acquired the ability for natural performance, and adults will input more into conversations earlier than children. Input Hypothesis The Input Hypothesis states that only understandable input will produce acquisition of the target language. It is implied that learners must be exposed to input that is higher than their actual level of knowledge of the target language in order to produce a result in the acquisition of the target language. Because some instances learners do not posses that higher level of input, the development and improvement of the target language will not occur. The Affective Filter Hypothesis affirms that the learners emotional state acts as flexible filters that freely permit or obstruct input necessary to acquisition. It is said that adolescence and puberty are not effective periods for second language acquisition due to the hormonal changes that occur during that development period. The Sociolinguistic theory is concerned with the effect of all aspects of society in the learning process of the target language such as cultural norms, expectations and context on the way language is applied. It also concentrates on the different types of language variation, ethnicity, religion, status, gender, level of language knowledge and how all these factors have an impact on second language learning process. The Acculturation Model which is a likely reason for the failure of second language competence refers to the process of adjustment to a new culture, on how new language learners acclimatize not only to the target language but also to the culture of that language. This model refers to immigrants that are in second language surroundings, but it could also apply to new language learners and the way it affects them to also acquire a new culture. (Sagae, MacWhinney, 2004, 119). For some learners the idea of modifying and adding another culture in their life could cause difficu lties in their language learning process. One important distinguishing factor in the acquisition of second language is fossilization which refers to the permanent cessation of progress towards the target language, despite all attempts and exposure to the target language. (McLaughlin, 1985, 209). An aspect that has a relevance to fossilization is motivation; there exists lack of empathy with the target language, the culture and the native speakers. Accommodation Theory The Accommodation theory implies the way learners may adapt their speech in multilingual settings. This theory suggests the way learners adjust their way of interacting with people of different culture with different languages in order to facilitate communication. It also states that: is the way the learners social group (ingroup) identifies itself in the target language community (outgroup). If these two groups do not have a positive effect on one another, or they do not connect and identify themselves with each other, there will be a consequence in the acquisition of the second language. When learning a new language, learners need to feel that they belong in this outgroup, they need to feel that they are part of this new culture and that they feel a cordial welcoming from this outgroup; but if none of these intentions are met then learners will not have an effective and productive learning acquisition process. Social identity is another sociolinguistic issue that has a great impact in second language competence. Social identity is the way in which learners understand themselves in relation to others, and how they view their past and their future. Structural inequalities can limit leaners exposure to the target language as well as their opportunities to practice it. (Asher Garcia, 1969, 338). The input that learners acquire could be received from different sources such as; the teacher, textbooks, individuals, radio, television, newspapers, magazines, etc. And if these resources are not accurate in their language transmission then the input might not be logical to the learners and the learners intake will be erroneous which will result in the failure of language competence. (Collier, 1989, 523). Conclusion In conclusion, numerous linguists believe that there is a Critical Period in which humans can acquire language. The theory proposed by Lenneberg about a limited time in which language can be acquired is supported by large amounts of research. Although many challenge this hypothesis with the theory of Universal Grammar, both are unproven. Studies have determined that invalid conversational interaction affects the acquisition of second language, which in result could decrease the pace of language acquisition. Invalid interaction is the product of inaccurate input, which could cause a decline in the learners participation and motivation to produce language properly. The role of instruction has been examined as the role of focus on the grammatical forms of language in instruction. Many factors such as; internal or external factors can modify the way learners acquire and learn the target language; the above stated factors can obstruct second language acquisition competence. However, learners can manipulate and be capable of attaining the knowledge of the second language if their perspective of the target language is adjusted. Learners with low motivation and low language confidence will have high filters which will obstruct the achievement of second language acquisition. There are other variables in second language acquisition process. Aptitude refers to the ability and capacity that a learner has towards the language. The attitude the learner posses towards the target language, how the learner feels, the posture they have towards the target language. Age has also an influence in second language acquisition, as it is stated above adolescents might have an increase difficulty level when it comes to acquisition of language due to the hormonal changes, but at the same time they perceive language faster than adults due to their neurological development. As for adults, they become more appropriate for the study of a second language because of their maturity, but at the same time, their learning process struggles due to their developmental age.