Patent ID: 8893961

Claim:
A computerized method for identifying an account assigned to a user by an institution, wherein the institution associates the account with validation data that the institution requires to be supplied by the user to allow the user utilization of the account, and with an identifier that distinguishes the account from other accounts maintained by the institution for other users, and wherein a credential comprises a combination of the validation data and the identifier, comprising the steps of: providing a computing device having a processing device; and providing a media that stores computer-executable instructions that cause the computing device to execute the steps of receiving, at the computing device, controlled by the user, a first part of the credential from the institution, wherein the first part comprises a first portion of the validation data and a first portion of the identifier; receiving at the computing device from the user a second part of the credential, wherein the second part comprises a second portion of the validation data and a second portion of the identifier and wherein a combination of the second part with the first part completes the credential; and transmitting the credential from the computing device, via a wide area network, to a receiving server with a request to conduct a transaction with the institution based on the account.