When it comes to online banking, security is the main concern. In Costa Rica, the online banking platform of Banco Nacional is known for its strong security measures like security certificates, virtual keyboards, password policies, and physical tokens. For account holders who want an even stronger chain of trust between their computers and bank accounts, Banco Nacional now offers Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC).

At the recent Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers conference (ICANN 43) in San Jose, one of the most sensitive topics of discussion was security and what the domain registration industry can do to improve it, particularly with regard to phishing and spoofing attacks.

One of the functions of ICANN is to establish good practices for the safe operation of root Domain Name Servers (DNS). These servers are the primal link in a chain of trust that keeps online banking clients safe from phishing and spoofing attacks. These attacks aim to fool people into surrendering their personal account information through deceitful emails, pop ups, search results, and cloned web sites. In the past, sophisticated phishing and spoofing schemes have tricked web surfers into entering their information on nefarious web sites that looked exactly like their banks’.

DNSSEC for Banco Nacional is a security protocol that lets account holders know they are actually navigating to the www.bnonline.fi.cr online banking platform. According to a detailed article written by Pablo Fonseca in La Nacion, DNSSEC issues a security certificate that is only issued to trusted institutions right from the root DNS, thereby insuring that no phishing, spoofing or questionable third parties are involved.

Implementation of DNSSEC by Banco Nacional for all online banking users will probably roll out in the days to come, but its functionality can be tested now by users of Internet Explorer, Firefox and Google Chrome browsers. The DNSSEC Validator browser extension is now available from download from CZ NIC Labs and can be installed and used with Banco Nacional accounts.

Once DNSSEC is installed in your computer, you can safely conduct online banking transactions, knowing that Costa Rica is the first Latin American country to implement this new security measure.

You can learn more about preventing spoofing attacks and other safe Internet browsing practices in our previous article: How to Secure Your Wi-Fi Network in Costa Rica