Internet banking refers to banking operations carried out between banks and their clients through Internet. It is also commonly known as online banking. Internet banking helps in expediting banking operations, reducing the cost and ensuring that you can utilize various banking services in your living room or even while traveling thousands of miles away from your home.

The process of Internet banking begins with every customer being given a unique user name and password by a particular bank. The customer can log on to the bank's Web site and use this user name and password to access his or her bank account. Then he or she can give instructions online to the bank regarding any particular transaction.

All major banks provide the option of Internet banking to their customers. The banks keep a record of all online transactions. Though Internet banking is fast becoming the most popular mode of banking, there are certain security issues which still remain to be tackled. Though most of the banks claim that their Web sites have enough firewalls to prevent unauthorized access to anyone's account, hackers have shown this claim to be false more than once.

There is always the possibility that you didn't log out from your bank's Web site according to the set procedure, as you were in a hurry while working on a public computer or over a non-secured wireless connection. This could have serious consequences, as someone else could misuse your account.

One important safety precaution is to keep changing the password at regular intervals. For safety purposes, it is better to memorize your user name and password than write it on a piece of paper. If you have forgotten or lost your password, call your bank immediately. They will either help you to retrieve your old password or give you a new password.