The government backed initiative TrustUK, which began operations
yesterday, aims to establish consumer confidence in on-line
shopping. It will provide official certification for web sites it
deems are suitable and secure enough for consumers to use.
Web sites wanting to register with the scheme will have to
conform with the TrustUK regulations and will be obliged to do so
under a signed agreement. All approved web sites will display a
TrustUK logo which contains a link to the TrustUK web site.
The project has received backing from the consumer body Which?,
the Department of Trade and Industry, the Direct Marketing
Association and the Alliance for Electronic Business.
Parties formerly involved in the development of TrustUK have
expressed their concern that it may not succeed in providing
consumers with adequate protection against the potential dangers of
e-commerce.
However, a spokesman for the DTI defended TrustUK, saying: “we
feel that TrustUK’s criteria are of a high enough standard that it
allows all customers to trade safer. But they’re not too high that
new companies can’t meet them”.
