CABS Internet Banking Stops Working

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Back in 2013, I railed against the introduction of an OTP security token by CABS.

The sheer annoyance of having to now carry around a little plastic security token, to generate a password each time I wanted to use my Internet Banking, had me in a tizzy.

The biggest effect, on me at least, is the Internet Banking. CABS had the first, best, simplest, most intuitive online banking system around. All I needed was a browser, and could access my funds and do all I needed to do online.

That has all changed … today.

Instead of just using my username and (secure, alphanumeric) password anywhere on the planet, and many a time from my cellphone, I now have to carry a little piece of hardware around with me.

Now I need my username, a four-digit PIN (I mean, really?) and a token device, which generates a one-time numeric password each time I log in.

Today it seems like CABS may have slipped up on this issue. A friend named Roger clued me in to a notice on their website, which reads;

Some of our clients are failing to log onto Internet Banking. These are primarily users with tokens whose serial numbers begin with 0875… Our technicians are currently working on this issue and we expect a resolution soon. We apologise for the inconvenience caused.

As Roger added, they may not have fully investigated their own system, and are now in a jam.

If you use CABS online banking and can’t log in, it’s because, they tell me, that the tokens “seem to have expired”. They didn’t know that that was going to happen, and they don’t know what to do about it.

It’s the anniversary of their introduction of this ludicrous token system on 1 November 2013, so presumably it will affect all those who have tokens from then. They didn’t know they had a two-year life, and they don’t know now whether they have to replace all the tokens (for which they will not have anywhere near enough) or whether there’s some way of renewing the expiry of the existing ones.

I, of course, have the fateful 0875… token device, so when I try to login, it is an “invalid action” blah blah.

This is not my first problematic encounter with CABS. In fact, I was telling a friend the other day, maybe it is time to move to an actual commercial bank, not a building society with banking tendencies.

If they do not resolve this soon (without making me visit a branch), this may just be the proverbial straw.

I have, as always, forwarded them this post.