Patent ID: 7444672

Claim:
A method for user-serviceable re-authentication for access to one or more financial accounts using a single sign on procedure, the method comprising: establishing a user identification; establishing a user password associated with the user identification; presenting a user with pre-determined challenge questions; prompting the user to create one or more original answers to one or more of the pre-determined challenge questions; associating the one or more original answers with the respective one or more pre-determined challenge questions; providing access to the one or more financial accounts by: prompting the user to provide the user identification, receiving the user identification from the user, prompting the user to provide the user password, providing a first mode of access to the one or more financial accounts in the event the user password from the user is received; and providing a second mode of access to the one or more financial accounts in the event the user password is not received, wherein the second mode provides access to the one or more financial accounts by: selecting and presenting to the user at least one of the pre-determined challenge questions having an original answer associated therewith, and receiving the original answer associated with each of the at least one selected pre-determined challenge questions from the user; prompting the user to provide ownership verification information; and receiving the ownership verification information from the user; wherein the one or more financial accounts comprise a plurality of financial accounts, and the method further comprises: ranking the relative ownership verification information requirements for each of the plurality of financial accounts based on the stringency of the ownership verification requirements for each financial account; providing the user with access to a first financial account having the most stringent ownership verification information requirements that are satisfied by the ownership verification information; and providing the user with access to the all of the plurality of financial accounts having less stringent ownership verification information requirements than the first financial account.