What are the benefits of the bank connection and how secure is it?

With the new SEEWARA® bank connection, you can securely integrate your account statements into the platform. Your access data is stored in AES256 encrypted form via the FinTS interface and the latest encryption technologies, and the entire data transfer takes place via SSL.

Your account statements are stored securely and can only be viewed by you and your accountant.

This function enables fast and precise allocation of accounting transactions and is particularly essential for double-entry bookkeeping.

Technical and organisational measures

Question 1: What technical methods are available and what is required to obtain bank data via FinTS?

• After entering the access data for the bank account, communication takes place directly with the bank via the FinTS interface.
• All two-factor authentication steps are also handled by the bank.
• It is assumed that the login data is provided to the bank again via the FinTS interface for each step.
• The access data is encrypted with AES256 and stored on a key storage server that is separate from the rest of the infrastructure.
• The key used for encryption and decryption is made up of several dynamic components to ensure the highest possible level of security.
• No SEEWARA® employee has access to these keys.
• Access at the bank is valid for 90 days. After that, it is cancelled by the bank and re-authentication is required.
• It is not possible to initiate transactions with the bank access data.
• It is possible that the bank account must first be authorised for HBCI+ in order to use the FinTS interface. This is often possible in online banking as a ‘self service’.

Question 2: How long is the bank data (the data and data categories) stored in the account?

• Indefinitely. Until the bank account link or the entire account is deleted.

Question 3: Is the bank data changed?

• No – they are listed chronologically in data records in the client account under ‘Account statements’ and are unchangeable – they are used exclusively for the collection and allocation of accounting-relevant transactions.

Question 4: What does the service provider(s) do with this data?

• Accountants: They have full access to the account statements in order to allocate items to documents, etc. Reconciliation of account items as accounting-relevant transactions, optionally / not necessarily with vouchers; account assignment of transactions with/without vouchers.
• Tax advisors: Have read-only rights, but this also gives them access to the account statements of the client concerned.

Question 5: In what form is bank data obtained in encrypted form and also stored in the client account?

• At the moment of retrieval via the FinTS API, the account statements are stored in encrypted form on the server side.
• Transfer from the server to the browser is always encrypted using SSL.
• When documents or account statements are retrieved for the first time, they are encrypted with the client’s document key and stored on the server again.