Jane Dudman reviews the myriad security schemes being launched to
bolster consumer confidence in online transactions
Bolstering public confidence in online transactions has become a
major focus of the security market. The result is a dizzying range
of schemes that differ in their practical details, but that all
have the same aim of improving consumer confidence in using online
systems.
Recent initiatives in this area include the approval of
accreditation criteria by the government-backed TrustUK scheme,
which oversees trade associations' codes of online conduct, the
publication of draft guiding principles by the European
Commission's e-Confidence Forum and guidelines from the Global
Business Dialogue for Electronic Commerce, to ensure comparable
levels of protection among competing Trustmark schemes.
It seems that protecting customers online has become a growth
industry in its own right, making it tough for online traders to
pick the protection scheme that will best suit them and their
customers. One of the difficulties is that organisations look at
the problem in different ways. IT company Unisys, for instance, is
talking to a leading UK standards organisation about setting up an
information security audit scheme. The emphasis will be on online
protection, but from an overall security management standpoint.
In contrast, an organisation such as the Consumers' Association,
with its Which? WebTrader scheme, which has been approved by
TrustUK (see box, Confidence boosters), is more focused on the
commercial aspects of online transactions. There are also a number
of commercial organisations, such as German company Trusted Shops
and Oxford-based Clicksure, which are competing with one another
and with government-backed schemes to provide online security codes
and systems. Jean Marc Noel, CEO of Trusted Shops, which charges
merchants a fixed fee, plus a percentage of online transactions,
says the Internet is over-regulated, but consumers still get a
rough deal.
"As consumers, you have rights, but to enforce them can cost as
much as £1,500 and can take up to two years," he says. "We feel we
have to provide not just a seal of approval, but a guarantee that
consumers will get their money back if they don't get their goods."
Noel says that while any scheme backed by the Government is
important, the TrustUK scheme, launched last July, has not provided
the lead in this area for which online companies are looking.
"TrustUK has failed to catch on and we feel it needs greater
industry-wide marketing," he says.
Even E-commerce minister, Patricia Hewitt, speaking at a Trade
and Industry Select Committee in December, conceded that the scheme
has yet to prove its worth. "The next stage is really to get much
more publicity for TrustUK, so that we get more code owners wanting
to become part of TrustUK, but also crucially so that we get much
more consumer awareness."
Roger Till, a director of e centre UK, which is one of the
members of the Alliance for Electronic Business that jointly backs
TrustUK, also acknowledges that progress has been slow. So far,
only three trade associations' codes of online conduct have been
approved by the scheme. But Till says it is important to get the
right processes in place and that moves are being made by the
Alliance to extend the TrustUK model into Europe. "A national
scheme is a good start but e-commerce is global, so we are looking
at extending the model and then the average SME trying to sell on
the Web will have a focal point," comments Till.
So far, no single online security scheme has managed to capture
the really big names in the market. A survey published at the end
of 2000 by PricewaterhouseCoopers suggests UK consumers and
e-tailers are paying the price, with e-commerce in the UK being
held back because of users' fears about online security.
Confidence boosters: online security schemes try to assuage
consumer fears
BS 7799: The British Standards Institution's (BSI)
standard for information security, backed by the Department of
Trade and Industry (DTI). Aimed at overall security management in
10 specific areas, including online trading.
www.clicksure.com : Commercial scheme, launched in 1999, based
on providing a Clicksure Mark, paid for by etailers which reach a
specific set of criteria, known as the Confidence Standard for
Electronic Business.
www.securityatwork.org.uk : Launched in November 2000 by the DTI
as part of its Management of Information Programme, for electronic
companies working on developing systems to improve security and
privacy. Includes a guide to network security and e-commerce
protection.
www.trustuk.org.uk : Launched in July 2000 as a joint,
non-profit-making venture between the Consumers' Association and
the Alliance for Electronic Business. Endorsed by the UK
Government, it provides approval of trade associations' codes of
conduct. So far, three codes have been approved: the Consumers'
Association's www.which.net/webtrader/code_of_practice.html; the
Association of British Travel www.abtanet.comm, and the Direct
Marketing Alliance's www.dma.org.uk code of conduct for its
members.
www.trustedshops.de: Launched in November 2000 in the UK. A
commercial scheme that provides a seal of approval, plus a
money-back guarantee for consumers, paid for by the online
merchants. Endorsed by the European Commission as part of its Ten
Telecom scheme.