An anonymous reader writes: Bank of America is restricting on-line banking to Microsoft and Apple operating systems
As a customer of BofA, I am now severing my relationship due to their recent and overly-restrictive "Electronic Communications Disclosure"
Bank of America
P O Box 15019
Wilmington, DE 19886-5019
ATTN: ONLINE BANKING SUPERVISOR
RE: Electronic Communications Disclosure and Policy
Online Banking Supervisor,
I am writing to make you aware that I will, shortly, close my accounts with Bank of America due to the recently introduced on-line banking policy entitled, “Electronic Communications Disclosure.” While this policy has, in my opinion, many objectionable elements, I find section 5, the “Hardware and Software Requirements” to be unreasonably restrictive. Therefore, I will shortly opt to discontinue my relationship with Bank of America and its on-line presence.
I have been successfully and safely using, for years, operating system and application software not dicated by your recent online banking hardware and software requirements (dictated, apparently, by your recent merger with Merrill Lynch). Because of my profession, as a software developer, I regard the recently dictated requirements to be overly restrictive and, likely, intentionally narrow. The exclusion of any operating system, except those produced by either Microsoft or Apple, is especially troubling. In my opinion, such restrictions have little to do with security. It is for these and other reasons that I am now likely to sever my relationship, however long and beneficial, with Bank of America and any of its affiliates that impose such requirements. Further, your inclusion of non-current and unsupported versions of Microsoft operating systems seems to contradict to your intention for improved security.
Should you decide to reverse the decision to impose such requirements on your customers, I may re-evaluate my decision to have or maintain a relationship with Bank of America. Frankly, I doubt that this communication will have any bearing on your corporate decisions. However, I implore you to reconsider the blanket imposition of these requirements on me and your other customers.