At some point during the year your credit union's audit firm may contact your credit union to perform a member account verification. This involves sending statements with a special message and unique return address, so that members respond to the auditing firm rather than the credit union directly. Here are some important tips to ensure your audit is successful: CU*Answers cannot change your credit union's return addresses on statements. CU*Answers uses custom statement envelopes for a  More...

Previously, credit unions used Code 38 for “Return to Maker”, but this code is no longer available in the system. This change was initiated by a Reg CC change in 2018. Now, if you are presented with a situation where you need to return a check to another institution, it is recommended that you use one of these codes to clarify the reason for the check return. Some codes allow you to make the change in CU*BASE. Others require that you contact your Check Item Processor. Read below for   More...

The Audit Tracker is simply a special type of Member Tracker. Trackers are used throughout CU*BASE to keep track of member communications, contacts, and events, for an ongoing record of the member's relationship with your credit union. The Audit Tracker is specifically designed to record events for your credit union's internal auditors. This includes things like BSA-related activities, OFAC scans, and the like. See the flyer referenced below for a current list of items recorded automa  More...

Because of CU*BASE design to integrate directly to the general ledger is one of its most impressive features, the teller system needs to process as its own section. In order to discourage inaccurate or misleading transaction reversals or back-dating, the dual system segreates the teller drawer (cash) from the member transactions and balances. If the two steps are not completed correctly, the general ledger will be out of balance. Fortunately you can use Tool #31 Reverse Tran/Adjust Drawer (Same  More...

The Audit Link service consists of three interrelated business activities. The first is an overall analysis of the credit unions needs, hot buttons, and recent audit or examination findings. This analysis is designed not only to tailor the program for the credit union but also to facilitate an overall general compliance tune-up. The second area of this initiative is the development of a daily, monthly, and quarterly roadmap of tasks to be completed. This is where the credit union would see the  More...

This file is populated when we receive the file from Sage Direct. Sage forwards the audit data to use once ALL statement runs are completed. This will typically occur between the 10th and the 15th of the month.

You can visit the Audit Link website at http://auditlink.cuanswers.com for guidance on upcoming regulations as well as any recent Audit Link news.

More information can be found in Chapter 13 “ODFI Audit Requirements and Rules Compliance” found on OG52 of the NACHA Operating Rules. The first sentence in Chapter 13 states: All ODFIs, Third Party Service Providers performing a function of ACH processing on behalf of those ODFIs, and Third Party Senders must perform an annual audit to determine compliance with all provisions of the NACHA Operating Rules. Third Party Service Providers and Senders are very well defined in t  More...

This happens rarely, but usually when we see orphaned records like this it's because the employee exited their CU*BASE session improperly in the middle of processing a transaction, either by clicking the close button or due to an unexpected power or communications interruption. For example, once a cash transaction is posted and the CTR screens are presented, the user must proceed; there is no way to back up and cancel the transaction at that point. Some users get desperate and click the   More...

You may update these fields for a member by utilizing Tool #15 Update Membership Information . After entering the member account base, use Enter to proceed to the maintenance screen, using Enter until you reach the final, Other Information screen. In the middle section you will find the 3rd Party and CU Contact Opt Out fields, which you can change on your member's behalf. The member may also update their preference via It's Me 247 online banking: Hover over Info Center and choose Con  More...

Performed on a daily basis, Audit Link uses the CU*BASE Dashboard for Negative Balance Analysis to retrieve negative balance data. A daily report summary is provided to your team illustrating negative balance accounts separated as 15-day buckets to assist in quickly identifying possible fraudulent activity and areas that may require immediate action. Also included with the daily report summary are graphical representations and delinquency ratios to assist in identifying key trends affecting your  More...

​ For General Support and CU*BASE Assistance: Use the AnswerBook to submit a question to the Client Services and Education team. You can access the AnswerBook via a CU*BASE session by selecting the @ symbol and asking a question, or by logging in and asking a question. You can also call 616-285-5711 or 800-327-3478 and follow the menu prompts to reach a representative. For Technical Support: Use the ConnectWise ticketing system to submit a question to the Network Services team. ConnectWise   More...

The fields are related to Process Codes, in that they are derived from the code attached to the message received from the plastics processor (vendor, or switch). The Type you see in the initial Type column of the Activity screen relates directly to the Transaction Description when you view additional transaction details. Transaction types may not apply to all vendors. Examples of these labels are as follows: DEP (Deposit Transactions) ATM/DEP A deposit made at an ATM. ATM/DEP - including a $  More...

If a member cannot view their check, the research team needs the following information: Credit Union Questions What is your credit union name? Have multiple members reported that they cannot view checks? Are these members having the same experience when viewing their check? (See Member Questions. ) Has the check appeared on the Check Exceptions Report? (TNDET) Was this check cleared at the teller line? (Sometimes this is referred to as a counter-killed check.) Are you able to retrieve a chec  More...

Using Report Builder (Tool #100), you can use the table (file) MASTPH, which stores member and non-member phone numbers and settings. The column (field) MTPATM shows whether or not the Allow Text Messages option is checked (Y) or unchecked (N).

When you use the filter buttons on the File Maintenance Inquiry dashboard (Tool #159: Audit File Maintenance Inquiry (CUFMNT)), indicators note which programs, fields/columns, and files/tables AuditLink has flagged as “critical” for auditing teams to monitor on a daily basis. You can quickly sort by that indicator and select only those items for a quick scan of maintenance that directly affects member accounts. Below is a listing of these critical items. Columns/Fields Field Why   More...

Check out the CU*Answers store for assistance in preparing for your BSA audit. See the related links below to learn more.

Using CU*BASE to Comply with New Rules for Tracking Beneficial Ownership FinCEN has issued new rules under the Bank Secrecy Act that require financial institutions to identify and verify the identity of the beneficial owners of all legal entity members (corporations, etc.). Under the final rule, credit unions are required to have written procedures to identify and verify beneficial owners of legal entity members who open new accounts on or after May 11, 2018. In addition to identifying and coll  More...

No, our CSRs will not reset the 2-character CU*BASE Employee IDs for your staff. This must be done by an internal CU security officer. Use Tool #762 Reset Employee ID Password . (This can also be done via Tool #327 CU*BASE Employee Security using the Reset PW option.) It is important that credit unions insure proper training to their employees regarding the expiration of their CU*BASE Employee ID password. We deliver a warning message of expiration 7 business days prior to the staff member.   More...

The differences ultimately come down to control and cost. The online ASP system is the fastest, simplest, most inexpensive way to get started with an e-documents strategy for your credit union. With online ASP you offload the back-end service management headaches to CU*Answers. We manage, backup, secure, and patch/upgrade the eDOC servers and databases and these processes fall under our SAS 70 and third party security audits. The online ASP system consists of electronic storage of receipts, loan  More...

Prior to the 16.10 release, the SSA began using multiple Company IDs, and it was recommended that credit unions consider using Automated Funds Transfers (AFTs) to handle distributions. Beginning the 16.10 release a new cross-reference system will be implemented that will automatically funnel all incoming company IDs from the Social Security Administration and treat them as if they came from one, consistent company ID we’re referring to as the “Primary ID.” With the changes ma  More...

Our policy is to adhere to PCI Data Security Standard/Security Audit Procedures mandates (these are the rules from Visa about how ATM, Debit, and Credit Card information is protected) which read as follows: 3.3 Mask PAN when displayed (the first six and last four digits are the maximum number of digits to be displayed). Note: This requirement does not apply to employees and other parties with a specific need to see the full PAN; nor does the requirement supersede stricter requirements in  More...

Credit unions can choose to hide the 000 account for select memberships. This is a business decision that may be elected for special accounts, for example business accounts. This feature must first be activated for the credit union in the Master Parameters in the OPER screens. Then credit unions activate it by using the Membership Designation configuration. Once activated in the membership designation, the feature will cause the 000 account to be ignored (for accounts of this membership des  More...

This comes from the Workstation Device Configuration in CU*BASE. To view or change this: Launch Tool #326 CU Hardware Configuration Select Terminal/Workstation In the list of workstations, locate the ID of the workstation you are looking up and double click on it (or just type the ID and press Enter) This will open up the terminal's configuration in CU*BASE. In the middle is the list of default printers where your documents will print: General Printer - this will be the printer to which a  More...

With the 16.10 release a new cross-reference system was implemented that automatically funnels all incoming company IDs from the Social Security Administration and treat them as if they came from one, consistent company ID we’re referring to as the “Primary ID.” In cases where the Depositor ID is the same, for example a husband and wife, these ACH transactions will be handled by the same master ACH distribution record under the Depositor ID since duplicate Depositor IDs are no  More...