Citizens Bank Enhances Its Online Banking Service With a Multi-Factor Authentication Security System.

NEVADA CITY, Calif. -- Citizens Bank of Northern California (the Bank), subsidiary of Citizens Bancorp (OTCBB:CZNB) announced that it recently launched a new multi-factor authentication security system for its Online Banking Internet service.

The Bank's new enhanced security feature will provide Online Banking customers with increased protection from fraud and identity theft. Instead of using only one type of authentication factor, (login IDs, passwords, secret images, shared secrets, personal information, etc.), multi-factor authentication requires the addition of another factor, the addition of something the user has or something the user is. The release of this new Internet security feature was in accordance with the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Counsel's (FFIEC) guidance for enhanced risk management controls related to authentication in an electronic banking environment.

Multi-factor authentication is not a new concept. It is used every time a customer visits the ATM machine. One authentication factor is the physical ATM card and the second factor is the PIN number the customer enters. Without both, authentication cannot take place.

"Our customers' security is our top priority. Our new security feature will help confirm our customers' identification when signing in to our Online Banking service through a two-way authentication process, preventing unauthorized access to their accounts," said Michael Behn, Senior Vice President & Chief Information Officer.

Michael added, "The customer selects an image called a PassMark, writes a brief phrase, and then selects three challenge questions. When someone tries to access an account from an unrecognized computer, they must answer one of the challenge questions correctly. So even if the customer's login ID and password have been stolen through spyware, a phony web site, or even from their own handwritten note, the thief would be required to answer a challenge question to get access to the account preventing the thief from accessing the customer's account information."

"It is our commitment to our customers that access to their financial information is appropriately secure," said Judy Hess, President & CEO. She added, "Although Citizens Bank has never been successfully hacked, we will always continue to be proactive in this area by implementing enhanced security features to ensure our customers' financial information is safe and secure."

Founded in February 1995, Citizens Bank, headquartered in Nevada City, became a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company in 2003. The Bank currently has 7 branches located in Nevada City, two in Grass Valley, Penn Valley, Lake of the Pines, Truckee and Auburn. Today, the Bank offers community banking services in Nevada and Placer Counties, including a wide variety of deposit products, commercial, residential and consumer loans, and other traditional banking products and services designed to meet the needs of small and middle market businesses and individuals.

This new release may include forward-looking statements about Citizens Bancorp's financial condition, results of operations, plans, objectives and future performance. A number of factors, many of which are beyond the control of Citizens Bancorp, could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. In addition, past results are not necessarily indicators of future performance.

www.citizensbanknc.com