Astra Bank is excited to announce the launch of our new website. In addition to being mobile responsive and easier to use on devices like tablets and phones, it’s now even more secure with the new .bank domain name. We’ve put together this helpful guide to help answer questions you may have.
What is .Bank?
.Bank is an industry-specific project that aims to make banking websites more relevant, more specialized and more secure. The .bank domain is only open to banks that are verified by their regulator. You cannot obtain this domain if you are not a bank. This alone should give customers a level of confidence that they are accessing a legitimate bank website.
Why .Bank?
.Bank is a trusted, verified, more secure and easily identifiable location on the Internet for the global banking community and the customers it serves. The .Bank gTLD (generic top-level domain) has enhanced security requirements that exceed that of most existing and new gTLDs like .com, .net, .org, etc. gTLDs are one of the categories of top-level domains maintained by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority for use in the Domain Name System of the Internet. A top-level domain is the last label of every fully qualified domain name.
Why .Bank Exists
Bank websites are unique in that they provide a portal into sensitive information and allow bank customers to gain access to their account information and conduct transactions. Bank websites have heavy security requirements and banks need to continue to manage risks so they protect their customers and themselves. .Bank gives banks the opportunity to register an industry-specific URL, not to mention the added security measures that come with it.
Added Security Measures
The following added security features, while not fool-proof, are intended to add another layer of protection and assurance for your customers that they are safe using your .bank site:
- Because the .bank domain is fTLD* verified and authenticated, phishing, spoofing, internet scams and malicious emails that target bank customers should be reduced.
- Each .bank domain requires this verification, as well as mandatory re-verification every 2 years.
- .Bank requires and uses Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC). In short, DNSSEC ensures that Internet users are landing on participants’ actual websites and not being misdirected to malicious ones.
- Any .bank website also must be SSL (secure socket layer) encrypted. This means that you’ll see https at the start of our website, and the fact that it’s showing in green, means that it’s an “extended validation” SSL Certificate, offering the highest level of encryption during your visit to our site.
Astra.Bank allows us not only new marketing and branding opportunities, but also the enhanced security controls that exceed those of most existing and new top-level domains. We now have a bank-specific domain!
*The fTLD was formed by the ABA and Financial Services Roundtable in 2011. Their mission is to operate gTLDs to enable verified members of the banking and insurance communities to meet security, technology and business needs arising from the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers’ (ICANN) introduction of new gTLDs. fTLD also operates .bank and ensures it is governed in the best interests of banks and their customers.