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University of Illinois Extension serving Madison, Monroe and St. Clair Counties

Main Office (Monroe County)
901 Illinois Avenue
PO Box 117
Waterloo, IL 62298
Phone: 618-939-3434
FAX: 618-939-7708
Email:uie-mms@illinois.edu
Hours: Monday - Friday 8 am to 4:30 pm (Closed 12 - 1pm)

Branch Office (Madison County)
1 Regency Plaza
Collinsville, IL 62234
Phone: 618-344-4230
FAX: 618-344-5602
Hours: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday 8 am to 4:30 pm (Closed 12 - 1pm)

Branch Office
1269 North 89th Street
Suite 3
East St. Louis, IL 62203
Phone: 618-397-4973
FAX: 618-397-8823
Hours: Monday - Friday 8 am to 4:30 pm (Closed 12 - 1pm)

Branch Office (Madison County)
4691 Patriots Drive
Scott Air Force Base, IL 62225
Phone:

Branch Office (St. Clair County)
621 South Belt West
Belleville, IL 62220
Phone: 618-236-4172
FAX: 618-236-9416
Hours: Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday 8 am to 4:30 pm (Closed 12 - 1pm)

News Release

Multi-Tasking with Our Phones

June 1, 2012

How do you use your mobile phone? Do you use it to talk to people, check the time, or play games? Do you use it do manage your money? More and more people do!

87% of the U.S. population has a mobile phone. A recent survey by the Federal Reserve Board, found that nearly 21% of mobile phone users report they used their phone for banking in the previous 12 months. And, an additional 11% surveyed say they will "definitely" or "probably" use mobile banking in the next 12 months. "Many of us grew up learning to keep track of our checking accounts with a pen and checkbook register; now people use their cell phones," says Kathy Sweedler, University of Illinois Extension Educator.

Advantages of using a cell phone for banking include convenience and up-to-the-minute information. Up-to-the minute information may be from checking your account balance or it might mean receiving a text alert from your financial institution. One-third of mobile bankers received a text message alert from their financial institution in the past 12 months, according to the Federal Reserve Board survey. These text alerts can be very useful and typically inform people of low-balances, payment due dates, and possible fraud. The ability to know about possible fraud early (from either a text alert or by noticing something wrong with your account when checking it frequently) means that you can put a stop to identity theft more quickly and minimize losses.

What can you do with mobile banking? Depending on your phone type and your financial institution, these tasks may be possible for you:

· View your balance

· Locate an ATM

· Deposit a check

· Cancel a lost card

· Pay bills

· Transfer funds

"One of the more amazing tasks you can do with a smart phone," says Kathy Sweedler, "is deposit a check to your account." It's a simple process that the smart phone app guides you through. (This is available with some financial institutions, but not all yet.) To deposit a check with a smart phone, you take a picture (with your phone's camera) of the front and back of the check, and then send it to your financial institution. It's deposited electronically and typically the money is available very quickly.

The Federal Reserve Study reported that security concerns are holding many people back from trying mobile banking. However, both smart phone browsers and financial institutions provide security. Contact your service providers with any questions that you have.

Even with built-in security measures, you can and should take steps to protect yourself:

· Download financial institutions' smart phone apps from their website to be sure you have the right app,

· Keep banking apps updated,

· Password protect your phone and/or app,

· Check your account frequently – report problems quickly.

Another handy money management task that smart phones can help us with is comparison shopping. With smart phone apps, we can scan barcodes of products and then compare prices from different retailers. Currently 12% of mobile phone users report comparison shopping in this way; an additional 48% of those surveyed said they'd like to be able to do this. Have you tried this?

And, while only 7% of mobile phone users currently use their phones to track purchases and expenses, this number is likely to grow. "Already 1 out of 5 consumers use a website or program to track their expenses and, as phone apps continue to improve, more people will find their phone convenient for budgeting and tracking expenses," predicts Kathy Sweedler, University of Illinois Extension Educator.

For more information about using smart phone apps to manage your finances, visit University of Illinois Extension Unit #13 website at http://web.extension.illinois.edu/cfiv/

Source: Kathy Sweedler, Extension Educator, Consumer Economics, sweedler@illinois.edu