Community Discussion: One of two Bank Of America online accounts requires 2FA every time I do update transactions

One of two Bank Of America online accounts requires 2FA every time I do update transactions

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The original poster has made at least one false assumption: i.e. that just because he has one Quicken BofA account that does not require 2FA, that every BofA account he uses in Quicken will not require 2FA. The original poster is wrong in his assumption (and hasn't submitted a shred of evidence to the contrary).

1.) It is the financial institution, in this case BofA, that imposes the 2FA requirement. Not only is Quicken not involved in that requirement, there is absolutely nothing Quicken can do to prevent that requirement from being imposed on a Quicken user. It is 100% controlled by the financial institution (and that goes for any financial institution, not just BofA).

2.) For BofA (and almost certainly for every other financial institution) the imposition of a 2FA requirement on the Quicken user can only be required for Quicken accounts that download using the "Express Web Connect" connection method. ALL BofA accounts that employ the Express Web Connect connection method will be required to submit to 2FA. No exceptions. Contrary to what Quicken employees say, or what Quicken users want. The key is the "Connection Method": NOT the Quicken name of the financial institution (real-world financial institutions often have multiple Quicken financial institution names). "Direct Connect" accounts CAN NOT impose 2FA on Quicken users. And Quicken plays NO part in the "downloads" from "Web Connect" accounts (Quicken does not enter the Web Connect picture until the Web Connect download has been completed ... meaning the user has already logged on to their financial institution web site, manually addressing whatever logon requirements the financial institution requires).

3.) Regarding the original poster's situation: for some unknown reason, no one, not even Quicken (who should know better), has "enlightened" the user ... who continues to falsely assume that he has a "Quicken" problem ... and that his problem can be "corrected".

3.) Some years ago, BofA stopped allowing their Quicken users to establish Quicken accounts that use the "Direct Connect" connection method. Quicken Direct Connect accounts established before that earlier cutoff date were still (grandfather in) allowed to download using Direct Connect. But - as I understand it (and experience it with my "grandfathered" BofA accounts) - currently, not even an existing Quicken user with "grandfathered in" privileges with BofA can create a New Quicken account that employs Direct Connect as its connection method. In my experience with BofA (for over twenty years): they are not likely to listen to their Quicken customers - because, as is true for virtually all financial instituitions, Quicken users constitute a tiny percentage of their customers. Financial institutions have no incentive to impose costs on the vast percentage of their customers, just to satisfy the tiny percentage of their customers who use Quicken.

4.) Normally I would tell Quicken BofA users to complain to BofA about this issue (complaining to Quicken will accomplish absolutely nothing), but in my opinion, BofA will not likely listen. It is a common mistake of Quicken users to assume that they have much more clout than they do. Often Quicken users who do not get what they want, threaten to stop using Quicken. While that would be a legitimate reaction, if Quicken was the cause of the user not getting what they want, it is a ridiculous reaction when Quicken has nothing to do with the user's issue ... as in this case.