cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/12108012

The EU guarantees most people a right to open a “basic”¹ bank account. Superficially that sounds good, but of course having a right to open a bank account implies that you can then be expected to have an account. It’s an enabler for the #warOnCash. The right to a bank account is a masquerade of freedom from which oppression manifests.

Anyway, you have to ask: do you really have a “right” to open a basic bank account if the procedure for opening the account is inherently exclusive? That is, if a bank only offers a basic account to people who are online, doesn’t a problem arise when this right to an account then leads to an assumption that everyone has an account?

Some banks take the requirement to offer basic accounts seriously by making the application a static PDF which can also be obtained on paper form. So the only thing you need is a pen (to open the account and presumably to use it). But it’s bizarre some banks put the application for their basic account exclusively in an interactive online format. Are offline people just getting “lucky” if a bank happens to offer a basic account application on paper?

¹ “basic” is not just common language here. It refers to a specific type of account that fulfills specific legal criteria.

  • XTL
    31·
    5 months ago

    We have libraries.

    • activistPnk@slrpnk.netOP
      3·
      5 months ago
      • Some libraries restrict Wi-Fi access to people who carry phones with GSM subscriptions that can be used for SMS verification at the captive portal – which also excludes those whose browsers do not handle the captive portal page even if they carry a phone.
      • The IP space of public libraries (assigned to both wi-fi devices and public PCs) is treated as shared IPs, so library patrons (including myself) are sometimes refused access by website firewalls that insist on IP addresses that are unique to the visitor.
      • Some libraries have a membership fee. My local libraries just dropped the annual membership fee this year, thus not a barrier for my area but I would not assume all libraries EU-wide are fee-free.
      • Library hours of operation usually do not go outside of normal working hours, which cuts out many day workers.
      • Not many libraries mitigate the security risk of shoulder surfing. Library Wi-Fi access is also trivially MitMd with an imposter AP.

      There is also the problem that online applications assume customers have online access for transactions going forward. That they have an email account that they monitor regularly. Which means it’s not just a single library visit to get the account open but continuity of access thereafter. I don’t imagine an online application that makes e-mail address optional. So this generally means people unwilling to share their banking relationship with Microsoft would be excluded as well.

      More generally, US libraries have a library bill of rights which to some extent ensures inclusivity. European libraries do not, sadly enough. This enables things like deploying Wi-Fi that excludes some demographics of people in Europe.