George
Egregious security flaw could compromise Funds.
The costs for Precious metals seem a bit higher than others. Their storage fees also seem a little higher. The "Metal Stream" automatic deposit method is very convenient. And might be worth the extra cost. Their shipping fees were a bit surprising since each type of metal or each different coin is shipped separately incurring new shipping fees, for example shipping one gold eagle and one gold maple leaf requires going back to square one on the web site and starting again, and incurring another shipping fee. As an IT Networking specialist I find that the worst aspect is that they have requested sensitive information via email. I received this bank verification option from HAA in an email: == - Provide a color photo of a voided check via email to us == Sending a copy of my check to HAA is like sending it via US Postal Service in a clear plastic envelope window exposing all the pertinent data. HAA personnel have refused repeated requests to address issue, completely ignoring my concerns. They still insists that this is procedure is OK! It is not OK! It is very dangerous for the users, and possibly leaves the security of the user HAA accounts in question. I will of course provide the needed information via a more secure scenario; but thousands of others may have their lives ruined through this egregious security policy flaw. Users should be very careful in giving anyone your private information, emailing such information is dangerous to your financial health. See quotes below. ===References: Do an internet search for: "is there a safe way to transmit confidential data" You will find these quotes: == The vulnerability of emails is the main reason why you should never exchange any sensitive information with this method . . . == The 2018 Symantec Internet Security Threat Report states that 95% of cybersecurity breaches are due to human error. Most email services store email messages as plain text. Meaning, any hacker can access the servers and easily see stored emails and their attachments (like that document with all your credit card info). == Beware, Email is Inherently Insecure Ask yourself: would I send this information via U.S. Mail visible in a see-through envelope? == I can not reccomend that anyone use this Company until they fix this email security issue.
Response from GBI Direct (Formerly Hard Assets Alliance)Mar 15, 2021
George, I am sorry you did not have a good experience during your interaction with us. I reached out to you to see if you could provide us with some details so we could address your specific problem but you did not reply. Hard Assets Alliance prides itself on being competitive with pricing on all of its good services. As far as the email security issues you reference, one of the functions of our website is a secure document center which allows for added security when uploading requested documents for account setup, purchases, or other transactions. Rob - Customer Service Manager for Hard Assets Alliance