VeriSign Rolls out a New Trust Mark to Bolster Consumer Confidence

Just ahead of the holiday shopping season, VeriSign Inc. has introduced a new mark that e-commerce sites can display to reassure shoppers about the security of their payments. The VeriSign Secured Seal denotes that a Web site uses Secure Sockets Layer encryption and other technologies?including the company's gateways–to guard customer payment data while shoppers are performing Internet transactions. The Mountain View, Calif.-based provider of Internet security and payment gateway services says the new mark has been tested with “a broad sample of online shoppers worldwide” and found to convey more reassurance about security than other marks tested. In addition, consumers can click on the mark to get a pop-up window displaying current information about security services the site uses. Concerns about phishing, among other online frauds, have prompted VeriSign to roll out the new mark, the company says. It points to survey research from Harris Interactive indicating that 31% of Americans are deterred from doing more online shopping by security worries, while 74% who have made an online purchase look for a mark indicating they can trust the site. In phishing frauds, criminals send e-mails to consumers embedded with links to fake Web sites, hoping the recipients will go to the sites and enter confidential information such as passwords or account numbers. “The state of e-commerce is at a critical point,” said Trevor Healy, vice president of payment services at VeriSign, in a statement. “Either it will continue to grow as an effective sales outlet, or phishing and other malicious activity will devastate its status as a viable business channel. For companies to maintain a strong e-commerce presence, they must be able to assure customers that the personal information they submit when making online purchases is fully protected.” VeriSign commands the largest market share of all Internet payment gateway vendors, with 39% of an $89 million market, according to Celent Communications. The new seal is available at no extra charge to online merchants using the company's payment gateways, fraud protection service, or managed security services.