Monday, March 30th, 2009
I have a peculiar relationship to my Rabobank Random Reader digipass. On one hand, I view it as a one-time pad and get really annoyed with myself when I have to login again just after logging out , as I feel that it ‘burns’ another key. On the other hand, it appears that it is one a one time pad system, as I have to enter transaction amounts into the device when generating a key to authorize a bank transfer. The each generated key is larger than the previous one and they seem to increment on some sort of scale. Naturally, this means I also want to try to reverse engineer the algorithm used to generate the keys.
So, as you can see, I think about my Random Reader too much.
Tags: cryptography, decryption, encryption, Rabobank, Random Reader, security
Posted in Life, Technology | No Comments »
Wednesday, April 16th, 2008
I just got off the phone with Charles Schwab and I’m got some stuff to say.
First, I was shocked when the person helping me didn’t know how to answer my questions immediately. I had gotten so used to solving my problems within a minute of calling Schwab that I was honestly surprised to hear the woman say, “I don’t know. Let me check with someone here.” It didn’t help that she and her colleagues ended up having to wrestle with the system for almost 30 minutes to delete an automatic transfer, disconnecting me twice while I was on hold. That being said, they solved the problem, were very friendly and helpful, and offered me $100 for my ‘troubles’. Now that’s how to ensure customer satisfaction! (more…)
Tags: ACH, American Express, banking, Charles Schwab, Netherlands, Rabobank, US, Wells Fargo, wire transfer
Posted in Amsterdam, Bay Area, Business, California, Life, Netherlands | No Comments »
