NEXITY FIRST INTERNET BANK TO RECEIVE AICPA WEBTRUST SEAL

(Birmingham, AL) – Nexity Bank, member FDIC, is the first Internet bank in the country to receive the CPA WebTrust seal of assurance developed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), according to Nexity Bank CEO, Greg Lee.

“Our primary goal is to be responsive to our customers’ needs,” said Lee. “We know from customer feedback that security is very important. The WebTrust certification is an important building block in the focus on customer assurance and customer service at Nexity Bank.”

In testimony given in 1999 before the House Subcommittee on Courts and Intellectual Property of the Committee of the Judiciary Hearing on Electronic Communication Privacy Policy Disclosure, Alan Anderson, senior vice president for technical services of the AICPA addressed the CPA WebTrust seal. “CPA WebTrust provides full, fair, and honest disclosure and provides assurance to customers or potential customers that a business engaging in electronic commerce is legitimate and has appropriate controls to protect a customer’s interests.”

The accounting firm of Ernst & Young conducted the independent examination. According to bank president David Long, “The Ernst & Young specialists examined our website to ensure that our web transactions meet the program’s high standards. They looked at our technology and our business practices to determine adherence to WebTrust’s principles and criteria. We believe the focus on information privacy and customer service creates a foundation for a pleasant banking experience.”

“Consumers are concerned about use of the Internet for sensitive transactions such as sending financial information,” said Graeme Payne, partner eCommerce Services for Ernst & Young. “WebTrust was developed by the AICPA to address these issues and enable a qualified CPA to attest to controls around business disclosures, transaction integrity and privacy of customer information.”

Nexity Bank is a true Internet bank that offers interest checking, money market checking, savings accounts, CD’s, ATM/Check Cards, on-line bill pay, overdraft protection, and home equity lines and loans on-line.

AICPA WEBTRUST SEAL BACKGROUND INFORMATION

• Developed by American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) to provide consumer trust and confidence in the electronic marketplace
  
  
• WebTrust Seal offers consumers assurance that a site that displays the seal meets consistently high standards
  
  
• CPA WebTrust Seal promises an examination of a web company’s technology, security and business practices
  
  
• Specially trained and licensed CPAs conduct independent website evaluation
  
  
• CPAs responsible for examining sites go through a training program administered by the AICPA
  
  
• CPA WebTrust requires a website to disclose its business and information privacy practices and to follow those practices
  
  
• CPA WebTrust requires a website to maintain effective controls over the integrity of transactions and to maintain effective controls to protect private customer information
  
  
• CPA WebTrust ensures that a website maintains effective controls such on the collection and use of customer data and encrypting and protecting private customer information
  
  
• Ongoing periodic updates ensure that the website continues to comply with WebTrust criteria
  
  
• On-line verification allows consumers to confirm that a website is certified to display the CPA WebTrust Seal
  
  
• The AICPA represents 331,000 CPAs Full text of the CPA WebTrust Principles and Criteria documents is available at the AICPA’s website at www.aicpa.org