A specialized terminal management solution is needed
for the following reasons:
1. Dispute resolution process is too long • ATM
transaction journal • Camera images Does the second
line support officer have access to these data points?
Typically no. A request to fetch this data will be
submitted to the ATM back office team. The back office
team would take anywhere between a day or two to fetch
these details. The transaction journal record provides
vital information about the point of failure. However,
the journal record is not always the silver bullet,
there could be innumerous reasons behind the
transaction failure.
• It could be a simple network timeout issue somewhere
between the complex sub-systems of transaction
processors leading to non-reversal of transaction
• It could be an ATM cash presenter malfunction which can
be spotted if one has access to the cash slot camera
images of the transaction
• It could be a transaction performed by a fraudster using a cloned card which can be spotted using the ATM surveillance videos
Imagine, the second line support officer having instant access to the journal record and transaction images, majority of the disputes can be resolved in less than an hour’s time. However, does your Switch Host provide instant access to transaction journal record and transaction images? No Switch Host provides real time access to transaction journals and images. Only a specialized terminal management solution will give you instant and real time access to journals and on-demand fetching of transaction images from the ATMs.
Imagine, the second line support officer having instant access to the device level failure record of the transaction. The Switch Host typically provides superficial details on device level failures. However, the CEN-XFS technology on which the ATM device architecture is built, gives full access to the device level failure details. CEN-XFS’s failure notifications of device malfunction can be harnessed on the terminal by a resident agent on the ATM. A Switch Host does not have any agent architecture. Only a specialized terminal management solution will give you instant and real time access to hardware failure notifications of the CEN-XFS model through its agent-based architecture.
2. Switch Host has no idea what happened on an ATM when it was offline
When an ATM loses connection with the switch host, it goes Online. And the switch host is kept blind on what happens during the online period. There could be multiple configuration changes, multiple admin entries and exits, multiple peripheral status changes, etc. These changes could prove to be vital to be reviewed in case of a dispute or for debugging. However, switch host protocol ignores such sequence of changes and only is bothered about the current status of peripherals. On the contrary, an agent based monitoring approach will ensure no such data is lost. The agent resides on the ATM and is recording all events irrespective of ATM being online or offline.
3. Key Performance Indicator (KPI) Monitoring of the self-service channel is absent
Most Switch Host vendors do not provide a KPI performance dashboard of your self-service channel. There is no well-defined set of measurement mechanisms of these KPIs. FIs are now interested in performance measurement of their channels. So, there is a need for a specialized terminal management system which allows FIs to define their own KPIs and a customized dashboard of Channel performance.
4. Performance Improvement Plan is not facilitated with the right tools
Continuous monitoring of the KPIs, week after week, will tell you if your ever evolving self service network is working at its optimal best. In order to make this happen, a system which can collect KPI data and produce custom visual dashboards of week-over-week, month-over-month performance metrics and allow detection of performance degrade is not only a necessity but a must-have mechanism for serious FIs looking to optimize the Return On Investment (ROI) of their self-service channel. Interface to ticketing systems and measurement of SLAs with respect to service and maintenance of the self-service network is of very high importance to ensure
optimal performance. A pivot report of component failure patterns will give a sense of exactly where the “time, e_ort and cost” is spent on the servicing and maintenance activity. This indication can prompt FIs and ATM deployers to attack the top pain points which contribute to maximum downtime.
5. Cash Replenishment and Cash Forecasting Systems are obsolete
FIs are forced to work with non-standard interface access to cash position data. Cash position data is provided by the Switch Host and the same needs to be sent to CRA. Most FIs have a spreadsheet-based system to collate this data and have no automated means to notify CRAs
about critical replenishments. Many FIs typically require a customized cash forecasting system that give priority to cash replenishment on high transacting terminals. Further, typical systems lack measurement of downtime due to supply shortage. A different kind of Service Level
Agreement (SLA) is need for CRAs to enable them to function at their optimum so that the end customer is never left disappointed with cash starved ATMs.
6. Terminal Software is not up to date, posing security threats
It is not the core functionality of the Switch Host to ensure that the self-service terminals are up to date with respect to software patches. A separate centralized software distribution tool is required to ensure that the complete fleet of self-service terminals are well patched to keep
up with the security threat landscape. An agent based architecture is necessary to enable an efficient roll out of patches.