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Security is a topic that's on the mind of both online bankers as well as banks. With sitekeys rarely noticed by users, some banks are looking at new ways to improve their security.

E-Trade, PayPal and Charles Schwab are among the banks that are providing "tokens" to their customers that show a revolving password used to log into their accounts. The password changes every minute, essentially stopping an identity theft from logging on with just a user name and password.

This is similar to what many corporations use for employees who want to log onto their Virtual Private Network (VPN) from outside of the office. The password constantly changes, so you have to have it with you in order to log on.

Other banks are looking at the use of credit card-type devices that provide one-time passwords for log in.

Some banks are going even further than the token approach, offering to send passwords as text messages to the user's cell phone. With mobile banking on the rise, this may be an increasingly popular choice.

While I understand the need for increased security, it'd be a pain to have to find out my password before logging into my account. This seems like it could be a great add-on for banks and customers worried about their security.

At least we know it's safer than heading to the local brick and mortar.

(Banks Test 'Text Messaging' Security - Investor's Business Daily)