Attention US members: ACH transactions can no longer be sent across international borders

Important note before reading:

This will not affect international bank wires nor will it affect any US-based ACH transactions initiated through our system. Although AlertPay is located in Canada, we have banking partners all over the world to process these transactions, including in the United States.

According to the NACHA - the Electronic Payments Association, ACH transactions that begin in one country and end in another will be formatted as a new transaction type: IAT (International ACH Transaction).

This is to say that US citizens will not be allowed to perform cross-border ACH transactions. Rather, the transactions will have to be classified as international in an attempt to help law enforcement agencies detect, investigate and prosecute money laundering and other financial crimes.

Recognizing international transactions will help law enforcement officials readily identify international payments and create a paper trail to track the comings and goings of money.

Please note that IAT transactions are not permitted through certain banks, such as Chase Commercial Online.

Please take a moment to review the following resources for more details.

Thank you for your time.

Resources:

https://www.chase.com/ccp/index.jsp?pg_name=ccpmapp/commercial/prod_serv/page/iat_transactions

https://www.key.com/html/international-ach-transaction-iat.html

http://www.frbservices.org/eventseducation/education/fedach_iat_resource_center.html

http://www.nacha.org/IAT_Industry_Information/

System Downtime

We experienced an unexpected downtime today between 5:30pm and 6:40pm. It was resolved upon isolating the problem related to our network. During this time, members were unable to login or make payments and were presented with a generic error page.

We apologize for the downtime.

Office Closed on Monday, October 12 for Canadian Holiday

Hello AlertPay members,

Just a little reminder: Our offices will be closed on Monday, October 12, 2009 for the Canadian Thanksgiving holiday! We apologize for the inconvenience, but we will resume usual office hours the following day.

You will still have full access to your AlertPay account, but Customer Support will not be available. Furthermore, any bank transfers or wires initiated on Monday, October 12 will be delayed by one day as a result of the holiday.

We apologize for any inconveniences this has caused. Thank you for your understanding.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our valued Canadian members — have a great Turkey day!

Attention Sellers: Try OpenCrypt—an All-in-One Membership and User Management Solution

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8 Ways to Avoid Fraud While Shopping Online

Shopping is not as easy and care-free as it used to be. There are now many risks involved in the seemingly simple act of shopping, whether online or in person. Please read the following points to help protect yourself from fraud:

1. Get to know the seller. Make a phone call or send an email and ask them about their products, services and how they run their business.

2. Buy from secure websites only. Look for the padlock icon and “https” in the URL. If the “s” does not follow “http”, then the site may not be secure.

3. Click only on email links you recognize and trust. If the email is a spoof, then the link may be harmful. Hover over the link to check the URL and use your best judgment.

4. Buy from AlertPay “verified” sellers. It is safer to buy from verified members since we have authenticated their identities and businesses.

5. Do your due diligence. Try your hand at some research. Read forums and blogs on specific sellers, contact the seller directly, do what you can to find out about their business.

6. Keep your computer protected. Install an anti-virus, use a firewall, secure your wireless networks, block spam from your email and get the latest software and browser updates.

7. Always log out of sites containing your personal details. If you do not log out of a website containing your personal information, your information can be compromised. This is especially true when using public computers.

8. Use different passwords. Use different and hard-to-guess passwords for all of your online accounts and use a combination of letters, numbers, special characters and upper/lower cases, if possible.

We hope these tips will ensure you the safest and most satisfying online shopping experience.

Thank you for making AlertPay your way to pay!