Verisign Exec: Kids Just Don't Worry About Security
12.04.07
discuss Total posts: 2
by Natali T. Del Conte
VeriSign may not be a recognizable brand, but the company's checkmark logo is. VeriSign executives discussed how its technology will intersect with Christmas shoppers at a media dinner on Monday in San Francisco.
Consumers look to the checkmark logo as a symbol of trustworthiness, which is why institutions choose to work with VeriSign to secure the financial identity of customers, according to Fran Rosch, vice president of authentification solutions for VeriSign. As the holiday shopping season progresses, consumers will inevitably be looking to protect themselves when buying gifts online.
"When we talk about having a relationship with the customer, it is tricky because we don't really have one," Rosch said. "We have a relationship with an online institution that has a relationship with the customer. We are okay with that as long as the customer feels a high level of trust when they are using that institution."
VeriSign's marquee product is the VeriSign Identity Protection (VIP) program. It is a one-time password (OTP) program that is currently being used by eBay and PayPal, designed to help defeat scam sites that sell discount electronics, among others.
With VIP, users have a single, portable credential that they can carry with them on a credit card, token, or cell phone interface, for example. That device will generate a brand new OTP when consumers ask it, so that when they log into a secure site, they can use both their regular password as well as the VeriSign-generated OTP, providing a double layer of protection.
"Consumers want this more and more on, not only their financial services, but also on the services that host their personal information like their social networks and dating sites," Rosch said.
Rosch said that the baby boomers demand a high level of security as the phishers and pharmers get more and more advanced.
"The concerns we worried about last year are not the concerns we worry about this year," he said. "And the concerns we worry about this year are not the concerns we'll worry about next year. The people who are trying to get your identity are really smart and they'll continue to advance their technology as well, which is why we have to continue to advance ours."
While baby boomers may be sticklers about security, VeriSign execs admitted that the Facebook generation is still a bit too lax about online security. They grew up documenting their lives online and may not learn the importance of protecting their passwords until they make enough money to protect.
"That generation is in for a hard lesson in terms of what information they put on the Internet," said Todd Johnson, senior vice president of worldwide marketing for VeriSign. "In more ways than one!"
Verisign Exec: Kids Just Don't Worry About Security - Reviews by PC Magazine.
