as a concentrated dwelling culture in a small Peninsula where optic cables are rather easily linked
South Korea boast the fastest domestic internet connection on Planet Earth
and like neighboring Japan has taken a step further in doing ALL in a cell phone
a bulk of work AND play is done On-Line in larger cities including Seoul and Busan or Pusan .

but there are TWO major obstacles in using on-Line internet banking smoothly with ease :

  1. compatibility of the OS operating system AND internet browser,
  2. and a complex array of security softwares riding on top of that to protect virtual banking,

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and although most major banks AND credit card companies are up to date in par with the latest OS operating system
chances are you will get blocked once you try an internet browser version just out OR 64 bit OS
when paying for on-Line shopping who use many more variation of security companies -_-

in short : new OS, new browser and more so 64 bit operation system is NOT recommended
any more than using a Mac in South Korea for serious banking business
(although there are a couple of ways around it TIME matters when it gets serious)

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[ Bank-side OS Operation System Compatibility ]

the most important matter in a monetary society is banking and it goes BOTH ways :
everyone WANTS to access all transaction more-so monthly routines AND immediate verification
BUT the banks have to implement tight security measure for more are subject to break-ins .

meaning, the security system will only allow software AND platforms that a majority of people use in this country .
thus, a fresh new product will take time to be accepted by the system
until a large fraction of its expected customers are start using it to log on AND do business .

so in OS operating systems this used to be lagging even when Windows Vista was released
and perhaps because of ensuing complaints : the banks were ready for Windows 7 .

and more-so it is implemented by South Korean law that Banks have multiple security measures for on-Line access .

and now the ultimate OS AND browsing software to be
Microsoft Windows 7 SP1 (service pack 1) 64 bit upgraded to  IE9 internet Explorer 9 .
so we are posting about this very set-up .

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[ Windows 7 SP1 upgraded to IE9 internet Explorer 9 compatibility with South Korean Banks and Credit Card Companies ]
  • Windows 7 SP1 works on almost all banks and credit card companies,
  • IE9 internet Explorer 9 works with most banks and credit card companies,
  • but BOTH is limited to 32 bit mostly, and NOT 64 bit

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knowing that, a couple of necessities in enabling easier access to banking and credit card websites :

  1. on 64 bit of Windows 7 you will see 2 versions of internet Explorer inside the Start Menu (Lower-Left). the IE icon on the notice bar is 32 bit . the simple icon is 32 bit and 64 bit will be noted within parantheses . start with the normal 32 bit, for Adobe Flash do NOT support 64 bit and all security measures in South Korea is embedded in Active X, another reason why you CANNOT use Apple Mac directly .
  2. and even so when starting ie internet Explorer : right-click with your mouse to select ‘start in Administrator Mode’

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by specific bank AND credit card companies :

  • CitiBank and Card : requires closing AND re-opening of internet browser,
  • Foreign Exchang Bank and Card : works fine,
  • Hana Bank and Card : works fine,
  • KeukMin Bank and Card : starts fast,
  • SaeMaul Bank : utterly requires re-Boot !
  • Woori Bank and Card : starts fast,
  • BC Card : starts fast,
  • HyunDai Card : works fine,
  • Lotte Card : requires to click on ‘see all contents without security’ tab at bottom,
  • SamSung Card : works fine,
  • ShinHan Card including former LG Card : requires closing and re-opening of browser, still must tweak internet Explorer [Option Settings] as in two paragraphs below –

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[ Problematic individual Security Softwares ]

but the /real/ problem kicks-in when each bank use differing security measures AND software
which in the end scrambles your computer system to a dead-lock as each upgrade is automatically stacked on top of each other
for the software companies are independent with their own pride of security at the price of uncomfortable repetition of installing AND uninstall ..

and it gets really dirty once out in the arena of the many, many on-Line shopping malls
taken care of payment by companies that each boast they are the best to the amount it all worth up into a mixed bag of trash //

the most common problem of security software is that it hangs (still there but continuous loop of installing) in the midst of installing .
so here is the most common way to settle it :

  1. on your internet Explorer : Tools > internet Option > delete Temporary Files,
  2. and at the same plane on ‘Check New Version of Saved Page’ set from *Automatic to *Every time you Open,

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so in an ideal set-up you should have a main computer OR laptop or notebook for work AND banking,
with a powerful second PC installed 64 bit for professional graphics or video work AND 3-D games .

as South Korea has finally joined the Apple and Mac world
most banks are compatible with iPad BUT still working on running on smart-phones including iPhone .
( however will be fully compatible SOON in the wake of rising users in multitude )
this is because prior to widened use of smart-phones
all phone banking was done on a close-circuit site each offered by telecommunications company including SKT, KTF, KT and LGT .

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also, you can have a separate FOREIGN account in the same bank
divided in Dollars, Euro, Yen, etc., which will accept AND wire-out in those currencies
BUT will be charged extra to convert from AND to Korean Won to use locally .
hmm .. seems we should put a new [Banking in South Korea] Page huh ?

.

 

– Korea Tech BLog, March 21st 2011 –

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[ April 27th Update ] most major banks are working sufficiently with Korean Windows 7 SP1 64 bit updated to internet Explorer 9
still lingers for each security programs update by itself regularly
some requiring closing then restarting iE9 AND some further requiring you to reboot the computer .

still a good rule-of-thumb will be that foreign banks and credit cards like CitiBank, American Express AND Diners Club is more of a hassle as they supposedly have more layers of stricter security features .

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[ November 13th Update ] few on-line sites of major banks AND shopping malls still have incompatibilities with 64 bit Windows 7 or internet Explorer 9
even though they may swear it all works -_-

so I recommend sticking to 32 bit and internet Explorer 8 throughout this year 2011

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( August 26th 2013 ) a whopping TWO years after this initial Post : ditto that last sentence on the last Update, as Microsoft is yearning to sell the latest Windows 8 as tablet’s friendly push-and-slide interface, Windows 7 is yet the way to go for most banks and credit card sites, especially if you’re trying to use ONE computer for all your work AND play with 64bit . for example, SamSung card which has been working alright with IE9 toppled over Windows 7’s default IE8, has now reverted their safe-zone back to IE8 .