Bank of Montreal - Canada

Bugzie

Is anyone else having the issue on doing one step updates on your account and if the BMO bank of Montreal is there… does it keep asking you for a security code to be sent to your phone when you try one step up. I have this every time when I log onto the quicken and do one step update. they rest of the accounts are fine why is in with BMO. I called quick several and still am getting no answer. One says it's a bank issue I can BMO give them the information and they said i don't have any security on my account that it's quicken. I call them back and they said it's a know issue and will be look at still 8 months later still the same … why do we pay for a program that dont work. I wasn't going to renew but they said it will be look at but thats only a way for me to pay anyone else having BMO issuses when you use one step update

Arctic Hare

Hi @Bugzie

I am a Canadian Quicken SuperUser that banks with RBC and BMO. One Step Update uses the Express Web Connect method of downloading transactions. Unfortunately, because of increased security protocols and other factors, using Express Web Connect is becoming increasingly problematic. After using EWC as my download method for decades, I have recently abandoned it and have gone back to using Web Connect, which is more reliable and doesn't present the same issues with security protocols.

Most banks now require you to use some form of two-factor or multi-factor authentication. EWC is not compatible with all forms of MFA. For example, if you bank with RBC and you use the RBC mobile app, you can't use MFA and EWC. And, if you turn off MFA, you significantly increase your risk of fraud and theft.

The other issue is that Canada is moving to adopt Open Banking, which is an alternative to Quicken's Express Web Connect. Quicken has not stated whether it plans to support Open Banking. I'm afraid that once Open Banking is available - probably sometime this fall - we'll start seeing more issues with using EWC (and One Step Update).

My advice is to switch to using Web Connect, especially where EWC no longer works AND to contact Quicken and ask them when they will support the Open Banking protocol in Canada. Express Web Connect is quickly becoming a dinosaur and is on the path to extinction. What Canadians really need from Quicken is for Quicken to start supporting the Open Banking protocol for transaction downloads.

grimmt1957

EWC has been working for me with both BMO (Mosaik-MC) and RBC and have been reasonably reliable as of late.

For BMO, EWC asks to either send SMS or email for 2FA. Then EWC raises a dialog to accept the sent code.

RBC MFA is a bit more complex in it's implementation:

• it first sends a ghost request to my phone to allow access, which always results in a timeout - EWC does not have an interaction associated with this first ghost request.
  
• EWC asks if I want to use text or trusted device for authentication.
• If I select text, I get a text on my phone with a code to enter and EWC raises a dialog to accept the code.
• If I select trusted device, I get an RBC app notification on my phone asking if I allow access and EWC raises a dialog to select Done after responding allow on my phone.
• On occasion, if I miss a response because I got busy with something else, RBC shifts to a second level of security and causes EWC to ask for a response to one of my RBC profile security questions before completing.

This has been working for me for quite a number of months now.

Arctic Hare

https://community.quicken.com/discussion/comment/20453788#Comment_20453788

The reasons why I assert these connections are "increasingly problematic" are:

• Firstly, EWC is supposed to run without user intervention/input… so, the dependence on entering MFA codes undermines the intent of EWC… even worse if you have to jump through multiple steps including ghost interactions followed by user directed second attempts.
• With BMO, EWC is providing the transaction date for both the transaction date and the posting date. That is, it is providing an incorrect posting date. However, if you use Web Connect with BMO, you will actually get the correct posting date. An incorrect posting date tends to cause issues with statement reconciliation. Hence, the reason that I use EWC with BMO is because I want to get the correct posting dates for my transactions and that is presently impossible with EWC.
• With RBC, it sounds like they may have tweaked something to give you a second way of getting it to process the MFA. Last time I tried, it would work if I didn't have the mobile app installed, but if installed the mobile app on a trusted device then there was no way of making EWC work. I would receive a notice on the App, but it would always timeout and there was no escalation to an alternate process. It sounds like they have tweaked something so that you can get it to complete… but, it also sounds awfully clunky.
• With RBC, EWC provides and incorrect posting date. It is different from BMO in that it is not using the transaction date for the posting date (you do get a posting date that is sometimes different from the transaction date), but it is giving a different posting date than what you see if you log into the BMO online banking site or if you use Web Connect. Web Connect gives the correct posting date and EWC gives an incorrect one that almost seems random - at least that has been my experience for sometime with RBC. As mentioned above, incorrect posting dates do cause problems with statement reconciliation.

I accept that you've (soft of) got it working, but it is clunky and provides incorrect posting dates. You'll note in my post that I described the situation as "increasingly problematic". I didn't say you can make it (sort-of) run. It does work as intended, it is clunky, and provides some incorrect data. Or, in simpler terms, "it sucks".

I've taken the wrong posting date up with BMO and they know this is happening and they know why it is happening, but they are unwilling to fix it. I haven't pursued the issue with RBC. I flew the white flag and switched to Web Connect with both.