Security
At Barclays Stockbrokers, we understand that one of your priorities when you open an account with us is knowing that you are dealing with a reputable organisation.
We have the stability and expertise of being the UK's number one retail stockbroker with over £7 billion assets currently under management. We are also the dedicated retail stockbroking arm of the Barclays Bank Group which has been involved in banking and investment management for over 300 years and in over 60 countries. Barclays Stockbrokers is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority for the conduct of investment business in the UK.
In addition to being authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority for the conduct of investment business in the UK, we also have the following measures in place to ensure the security of your sharedealing activities and personal information:
- A secure website
- Financial Services Compensation Scheme
- A statement regarding email communications
- Our Client Service Promise
- A Privacy Policy
The security of your financial information is very important to us. Identification numbers and encryption technology have been used to ensure that our online sharedealing service is a safe and secure environment.
Security of your password
When you apply to use our services online, we will supply you with a unique User ID and ask you to nominate a password. Please note that passwords are case sensitive when accessing the website.
Your User ID and password give you full online access to your Barclays Stockbrokers account, and you should take adequate steps to make sure that this information remains secret and accessible to you only or your authorised representatives. To safeguard these details you must:
- memorise your password
- ensure that you do not tell anyone your password, and ensure that it is kept secret by taking appropriate steps to prevent its disclosure
- change your password regularly.
If you forget your password please call us on 0845 601 7788. After taking you through some security checks we will ask you to specify a new password. When you next login you need to use your new password.
You must notify Barclays Stockbrokers immediately on 0845 601 7788 if you think your password is:
- known or could be known by someone else,
- lost or stolen, or
- used without your authorisation.
For security reasons, so we can verify that you are who you say you are when telephoning us, we will ask you a series of questions, which we call our identification and verification checks.
Secure Socket Layer
Our web based services use a technology known as Secure Socket Layer (SSL) which means that the information sent across the network is scrambled. SSL protects information as it crosses the internet so even if it does fall into the hands of a third party, it is virtually impossible to decipher. To support this technology, you need an SSL-capable browser. Barclays Stockbrokers recommend using a strong encryption, 128-bit browser like Netscape Navigator 6.2 or higher or Microsoft's Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher. These browsers will activate SSL automatically whenever you log into your Barclays Stockbrokers account. A symbol at the bottom of your screen tells you if you are in a secure site. For Netscape Navigator the symbol is a key. For Internet Explorer the symbol is a lock. If the symbol is unbroken or the padlock is in the locked position then you are using a secure server.
Encryption
When you use our online dealing service, information and instructions are passed over the internet as messages between yourself and Barclays Stockbrokers. Encryption is used to encode or scramble these messages so that only you and Barclays Stockbrokers can understand the content.
Cookies
Cookies are harmless text files that web servers can store on your computer's hard drive when you visit a site. They allow the server to recognise you when you revisit. There are two main types:
Transient (or per-session) cookies - these only exist for your site visit and are deleted on exit. They recognise you as you move between pages, for example, recording items added to an online shopping basket. These cookies also help maintain security.
Persistent (or permanent) cookies - these stay on your machine until expiry or deletion. Many are built with automatic deletion dates to help ensure your hard drive doesn't get overloaded. These cookies often store and re-enter your log-in information, so you don't need to remember membership details.
We use both types of cookie.
Additionally, cookies can be first or third party cookies. First party cookies are owned and created by the website you're viewing. Third party cookies are owned and created by an independent company, usually a company providing a service to the webiste owners.
What we use cookies for
Internet cookies are common and do not harm your system – they just store or gather site information. They help you do things online, like remembering logon details so you don’t have to re-enter them when revisiting a site.
We use cookies to:
1. Gather customer journey information across our sites
2. Ensure your privacy in our secure sites
3. Store login details for our secure sites
4. Temporarily store details input into our calculators, tools, illustrations and demonstrations
5. Store details of your marketing, product and business unit preferences to improve our targeting and enhance your journey through our sites
6. Evaluate our sites advertising and promotional effectiveness (we own the anonymous data collected, which is not shared with anyone).
We use both our own (first party) and partner companies’ (third party) cookies to support these activities.
We don’t use cookies to track people’s Internet usage after leaving our sites and we don’t store personal information in them others could read and understand. We will not sell or distribute cookie information without your prior consent.
Services requiring enabled cookies
Some of our services, including Barclays Online Banking, require cookies in your browser to view and use them and to protect your financial and personal information.
Changing your cookie settings
To enable or disable cookies, follow the instructions provided by your browser (usually located within the “Help”, “Tools” or “Edit” facility). Alternatively, an external resource is available at www.allaboutcookies.org/manage-cookies providing specific information about cookies and how to manage them to suit your preferences.
Please note that should you choose to set your browser to disable cookies, you may not be able to access secure areas of this website, for example any online accounts you may hold.
Secure online services
Any secure online services you subscribe to with us may use cookies to enable information about you and your preferences to be stored and to prevent unauthorised access to your services and information. Cookies must usually be accepted in such circumstances - without them we cannot ensure your information is secure (and people rejecting cookies can’t use the services).
By “our/we/us/ours” we mean Barclays Bank Plc and its wholly and partly owned subsidiaries and any company in which it has an interest by way of shareholding or any company in a group of companies to which it may belong (‘our group’). By “our sites” we mean any internet website operated by Barclays Bank Plc and any company in our group.
Logging out
If you have logged in to the secure area of the site and then choose to finish your session, you should always logout to prevent unauthorised access to your account. To do so use the ‘Logout’ button in the left hand menu of the website. You will only see the ‘Logout’ button whenever you are logged in to your account.
Timed out sessions
When you are logged in to the web site and remain inactive for a period of time, you will be logged off automatically. This protects your account from unauthorised access if you forget to log out. The timeout will occur after 20 minutes of inactivity.
Website downtime
We will use the ‘Message Centre’ section of the website to tell you about any work being carried out to the website which may affect your use of the site. We will also tell you about any important information about our services and the trading environment. The Message Centre will keep you posted with the latest announcements from Barclays Stockbrokers and inform you of new features and services.
We will always try and ensure that web downtime is kept to a minimum. When we know that the site is going to be down, we will try to give you with as much advance notice as possible. Such messages will include dates and time of downtime and what parts of the site will not be available. If the whole site is unavailable we will have a static page in place during the downtime to explain why the site is unavailable.
To access the ‘Message Centre’ select the link located in the left hand menu displayed throughout the website.