For example, Brian Thompson, vice president of IT at American First CU said, nearly 70% of its members live more than five miles from a branch. "This increased functionality will be perceived as more convenient and much faster than driving down to the ATM or mailing the deposit," Thompson says, while adding functionality to the credit union's online banking service and helping to keep down ATM expenses.

Credit unions set the criteria for usage. American First is targeting it toward its 2,000 members who use ATMs for deposits, the 10,000 who qualify for "no bounce" checking accounts and the 200 who are "late loan payment" members. Code Green at WTFCU

KENSINGTON, Md. — WTFCU has chosen a data-protection appliance from Code Green Networks to prevent data leakage and protect the security of online information flow at the $243 million suburban Washington CU.

The Code Green Networks CI Appliance protects member information and helps ensure compliance with NCUA guidelines for data security, according to Sreekanth Ravi, chairman and CEO of Code Green Networks (www.codegreennetworks.com) in Santa Clara, Calif.

"We selected the Code Green Networks appliance because of its comprehensive data protection capabilities, small footprint, and ease of use. It covers data transmitted via SMTP e-mail, FTP, HTTP and Web mail and it automatically ensures compliance with our strict internal policies and industry requirements," says Stephen Jones, chief technology officer at WTFCU (www.ctfcu.org). Arizona FCU Hires USERS Maestro Group

PHOENIX — Arizona Federal Credit Union will be integrating third-party applications such as identity verifications and employee authorizations with the help of a Maestro.

The $1.6 billion CU says it will be using the Maestro Projects Group consulting team from core processor USERS Inc. to lead the multi-phase business process improvement project.

The first phase will focus on account enrollment processes such as OFAC identity checking, address and Social Security number verification and retail credit history.

"With Maestro, we expect to get a big bang for our buck quickly by deploying a very efficient enrollment workflow in a very short timeframe," says James Phillips, vice president and chief information officer of Arizona FCU.

The second phase will focus on standardizing processes for authorizing employee access to the CU's core processing system from USERS, a Fiserv credit union core processing unit based in Valley Forge, Pa.

"With more than 700 employees on staff and their roles changing all the time, it's important that we develop an automated, consistent process to manage and control their system authorizations," Phillips says.

ELGIN, Ill. — Lending Solutions Inc. says it has signed three new users of its WebClose service, an interactive member service system for online lending.

They are $39 million Associated Health Care CU of St. Paul, Minn., $88 million K.C. Police CU of Kansas City, Mo., and $35 million Eastern New York FCU of Napanoch, N.Y.

The WebClose system kicks in when an online loan application has been approved. An additional window opens with a congratulatory message and the member is then invited to an online chat with a Lending Solutions staff member to confirm rate, terms and payment. Cross-selling also is available and the loan details are then presented to the member and sent to the credit union.

"Lending Solutions' WebClose technology merges the benefits of working over the Internet with human interaction, and further improves their ability to fund loans to members," says Jeff Frantz, senior vice president at Lending Solutions, a provider of lending center services and consulting programs to more than 300 credit unions, banks and mortgage companies.