CU "special" checking account w/3% APY

[ThomasJNewton]

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@CreditMarathoner wrote:

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Using a debit card online isn't safe either.  It's even less safe than physical card transactions since you have to provide the actual numbers, not an encrypted chip read.

Apple Pay does not provide your full account number (or your account number at all) when used either via one’s device or the web.

Having to apply for membership at multiple CUs just to get a decent return on savings is a hassle too.  I hope with rising rates my CU starts offering better options for savings.

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Agree with you there for the most part. I would not care about put money in several accounts, and even setting up Direct Deposit, it would be requiring debit card transactions that would be too much of a hassle for me. 

[CreditMarathoner]

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@ThomasJNewton wrote:

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@CreditMarathoner wrote:

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Using a debit card online isn't safe either.  It's even less safe than physical card transactions since you have to provide the actual numbers, not an encrypted chip read.

Apple Pay does not provide your full account number (or your account number at all) when used either via one’s device or the web.

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That still requires Apple (at least) to have my debit card info on file.  Even they could get hacked or compromised.

Also, it's possible that using a wallet app like Apple Pay wouldn't count towards the $500 in debit card transactions anyway.  The CU may want the card used for purchases directly.  I guess I'd have to ask them if I considered signing up.

I bet the reason they want debit card transactions is because the swipe fees help fund the additional interest/dividends.  If online bill pay counted, I'd definitely jump on it.

[ThomasJNewton]

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@CreditMarathoner wrote:

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That still requires Apple (at least) to have my debit card info on file.  Even they could get hacked or compromised.

Nope, Apple does not store your number on your device nor on their servers. Look under security. 

Also, it's possible that using a wallet app like Apple Pay wouldn't count towards the $500 in debit card transactions anyway.  The CU may want the card used for purchases directly.  I guess I'd have to ask them if I considered signing up.

Apple Pay transactions are just like regular transactions, so I would be surprised if they did not treat them that way.

I bet the reason they want debit card transactions is because the swipe fees help fund the additional interest/dividends.  If online bill pay counted, I'd definitely jump on it.

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 That may have been true before the Senator Durbin limited the debit card swipe fees. Given that you can do a single transaction to fulfill the requirement and that nets them at most $0.21, I doubt that is why they require it.

[SouthJamaica]

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@ThomasJNewton wrote:

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@SouthJamaica wrote:

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@ThomasJNewton wrote:

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There are debit card transactions that are pretty secure and not likely to be a problem, especially if the counter party has deep pockets and can be sued if there is a problem.

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I disagree

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Just to be clear, you are saying that you think that Apple Pay is not secure and that you could not trust loading $500 a month on to your Apple Cash card?

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Yes, as @CreditMarathoner just observed, online transactions are as risky as card reader transactions. It's not a question of how much you spend in the online transactions, it could be $1 or ten cents. What matters is how much you have in the bank account(s) that are linked to the debit card.

[longtimelurker]

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@CreditMarathoner wrote:

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  A debit card tied to an account with $10K kept in it is like carrying $10K cash in your pocket and walking through the seedy part of town.

So we keep hearing (and from @SouthJamaica ) but where is the data to back that up.   I can equally convincingly (and truthfully) say that I have had multiple reward checking accounts for about 8 years, with 20-30K in them while in use, and never suffered a hack while using Bluebird/cash app/amazon reloads.   Whereas last time I walked through the seedy part of town, well..!   Yes, just one data point, but that's one more than....

So yes, there is some risk but before the scare, it would be good to quantify.   If the risk is too great for the gain for you fine, but others can come to different conclusions.

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[SouthJamaica]

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@longtimelurker wrote:

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@CreditMarathoner wrote:

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  A debit card tied to an account with $10K kept in it is like carrying $10K cash in your pocket and walking through the seedy part of town.

So we keep hearing (and from @SouthJamaica ) but where is the data to back that up.   I can equally convincingly (and truthfully) say that I have had multiple reward checking accounts for about 8 years, with 20-30K in them while in use, and never suffered a hack while using Bluebird/cash app/amazon reloads.   Whereas last time I walked through the seedy part of town, well..!   Yes, just one data point, but that's one more than....

So yes, there is some risk but before the scare, it would be good to quantify.   If the risk is too great for the gain for you fine, but others can come to different conclusions.

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Here is an informative article on the subject:

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/376344

[CreditMarathoner]

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@ThomasJNewton wrote:

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@CreditMarathoner wrote:

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That still requires Apple (at least) to have my debit card info on file.  Even they could get hacked or compromised.

Nope, Apple does not store your number on your device nor on their servers. Look under security. 

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The card or account number has to be stored somewhere in order for them to charge payments/purchases to your account.  Maybe it's not sent to merchants or stored on an Apple server, but it has to be stored somewhere (a 3rd party payment processor's server?) that could still be compromised.  Otherwise, they'd have no way to charge your purchases to your account.

I'd also have to hope that enough stores/merchants actually accept Apple Pay or whatever "wallet app" I'm using (I have no Apple devices, haha) in order to make the necessary $500 in purchases per month.

Even if security weren't a concern at all, keeping track of spend to that degree, making sure I put at least $500/mo on the debit card instead of CCs, is a lot of work for a modest return (though generous in these days of abysmal interest rates on bank accounts), especially when I can earn cash back on the same spend on CCs.  On top of that, having to "make up" on months where I don't reach $500 by buying Amazon gift cards or the like.

[longtimelurker]

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@SouthJamaica wrote:

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@longtimelurker wrote:

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@CreditMarathoner wrote:

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  A debit card tied to an account with $10K kept in it is like carrying $10K cash in your pocket and walking through the seedy part of town.

So we keep hearing (and from @SouthJamaica ) but where is the data to back that up.   I can equally convincingly (and truthfully) say that I have had multiple reward checking accounts for about 8 years, with 20-30K in them while in use, and never suffered a hack while using Bluebird/cash app/amazon reloads.   Whereas last time I walked through the seedy part of town, well..!   Yes, just one data point, but that's one more than....

So yes, there is some risk but before the scare, it would be good to quantify.   If the risk is too great for the gain for you fine, but others can come to different conclusions.

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Here is an informative article on the subject:

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/376344

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Note that is mainly about skimming and phishing, which can largely be avoided by using fixed sites like Cash App or Blackbird.   Plus, as they say, it certainly can be a headache, but in the end liability is at most $500, so not exactly a wipe out.

Yes, casual users should certainly be careful (as they should with credit cards, and cars for that matter!)  But the risk, at least for me, isn't all that great.