Now is the time to start building trust

If the UK is to become an international e-commerce leader there needs to be a fundamental shift in the thinking of businesses, consumers, online retailers and legislators.

The main inhibitor to growth in online trade is trust. Consumers and businesses are not confident enough that their web transactions are secure.

So vnunet.com's sister title Computing this week launches its Question of Trust campaign to raise awareness and boost confidence in UK e-commerce.

High-profile industry figures are supporting our campaign. E-commerce minister Stephen Timms is concerned that a lack of trust is inhibiting widespread adoption of e-commerce in the UK.

"In promoting the benefits of life and business in the information age, we have to be aware of the real and perceived limitations to progress," he said. "The issue that comes up time and time again is trust. We must address this problem."

E-envoy Andrew Pinder added that a lack of consumer trust prevents smaller companies from exploiting the web to the full.

"The real issue is where people are unsure of the supplier and they don't recognise the brand, which sometimes counts against small businesses," he explained.

"Technology has moved on a great deal and it's more secure than it was. But, if you're going to have e-voting for example, you need to instil confidence."

And Alex van Someren, chief executive at security specialist nCipher, suggested that vendors have shot themselves in the foot.

"The security market said how dangerous the internet is and people have said: 'Well I'm not putting my credit card number over the internet,'" he explained.

The lack of trust has evolved through a combination of scaremongering, ignorance, a very low number of prosecutions for online fraud, a stigma associated with the victims of online crime, and poor use of technology.

Despite a variety of laws and regulations to protect online businesses and consumers, there are very few offences reported. And of those that are, few go to trial.

Trying to change the legislation is not the answer. The law, to a certain degree, is irrelevant because retailers don't want the bad PR that comes with admitting to an online security breach.

"Shops [or online retailers] are sometimes loath to have this adverse publicity and they deal with things outside of the courts, which means we have this Catch 22 situation," said Beatrice Rogers, e-business programme manager at Intellect. "People fear bringing prosecutions because of the adverse publicity."

Over the coming months Computing will be campaigning to change this attitude, to improve levels of trust and confidence in transacting over the internet, to encourage the correct use of security technologies and to boost e-commerce adoption in the UK.

It will be conducting extensive research to find out why trust is so low, and to unravel the myths associated with security and e-commerce.

It will gather high-profile industry members to discuss how to increase confidence, encourage online retailers to report security breaches, and explain the law surrounding this area.

Computing wants to hear your views about trust in e-commerce. Email emma_nash@vnu.co.uk