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Safe Internet Shopping- WHO DO YOU TRUST?
TrustToolbar uniquely verifies company identity and validates SSL

Kent, UK, 19 April 2002. Certification authorities (CA) typically charge quite a high price (as much as $1000) for an SSL certificate that enables a merchant to display the little gold padlock with a website link - indicating that you, the customer, have a secure, i.e. encrypted, link with him. The price is justified by the fact that before issuing this certificate, the CA will have to carry out extensive checks on the merchant, his company registration, credit rating and so on.

So, when an Internet user sees the little gold padlock in his browser, he knows it is safe to shop from that merchant, right?

Well, maybe not. According to Melih Abdulhayoglu, Chief Security Architect with COMODO, the picture is rather different from the user's perspective. "First of all, if you see a padlock in your browser, how do you know that it is an authentic one?" he asks.

"The answer is -- you don't," he explains. "It could simply be a graphic displayed by the website, and unless you know how to check, you will not know any different!"

So, if there is a padlock displayed, does this mean that the URL (web address) that we see in our browser bar is who we have a secure link with?

"NO!" says Abdulhayoglu. "All it means is that you have an encrypted link with the certificate holder. There is no verifiable or trustable link between the padlock and what you see in our URL bar! Unless of course you double click on the padlock to view the details of the certificate and then compare it with what is being shown on the URL. And let's face it, how many people are willing to go through the rigmarole of doing that (or even know that this is possible in the first place!) this is provided that they can trust the details displayed when clicking on the padlock and are getting the authentic information! As explained above this could be a fake padlock and fake detail could be displayed as a result of clicking on this fake padlock.

So what does that mean to the potential Internet Shopper?

The implication is that unless the customer has a simple way to check the authenticity of the SSL padlock and link, and verify that he really is connected with the company he intends, the investment the merchant has made in his SSL certificate is not reflected in confidence by the customer. After all what good is it to pay $1000 to get your Identity verified by the CA for your SSL yet this "Costly" exercise is not passed to benefit the end user? After all this is what other CA's say in their agreement about your identity: "You are responsible for deciding whether or not to rely on the information in a certificate". If there is no warranty or guarantee against fraud and the user is left to his own devices and made to investigate each and every certificate himself/herself then the user does not get any benefit from you paying $1000 to validate your identity!

Until now that is. COMODO recently launched TrustToolbar, an Internet Explorer plug-in, FREE to end users that does exactly that. COMODO has spent many man-years building the largest directory on the web, with the details verified of over 5 million company names, 15 million links and 10's of thousands of registered brand names.
Users of TrustToolbar are provided with "Web Identity Assurance" thanks to the "Identity Assurance Infrastructure" built and operated by Comodo. TrustToolbar gives assurance of the legitimate owner of the website and protects the user. It's about arming the user with the correct information so that the user can make informed decisions.

So what is the value of an SSL certificate? Because COMODO has already verified all the companies in its Trusted Directory, It is now offering SSL certificates for only P.O.A. - even less for multiple years! Companies currently not listed in the Trusted Directory can enter their details FREE with TrustToolbar Merchant Suite Express (TMS Express), or pay a nominal amount to have their logo added for even greater corporate identity.

"That's what it's really all about!" says Abdulhayoglu. "Verification of the Identity and ability to pass this Identity Verification to the end user hence offering "Web Identity Assurance" is the solution to TRUST!"

COMODO sales director, Paul Tourret expects this to herald a change in the market for certificates. "We predict the market over time will move towards people buying Encryption Certificates (SSL Certificates) and Identity Certificates (TrustToolbar Based Certificates) separately," he says, "and that SSL prices as we know now will fall to sub US $25. A reflection of this trend is already seen with Comodo's current SSL prices at US P.O.A. ! Comodo will make sure it is leading the market in providing "Commodity Products at Commodity Prices!"

TrustToolbar also makes the Internet easier to use. Because of all the information already indexed in the Trusted Directory, users can navigate simply by typing in a company name - no need for users to remember complex URL's - and no need for companies to re-register new generations of dot endings!

For more details please visit InstantSSL - SSL Certificate Authority, www.trusttoolbar.com or www.comodo.com

Editors: for further information on this subject, please contact:
Paul Tourret, COMODO Ltd.
Tel: 0161 877 7025. Email: dawn.smith@comodogroup.com

About InstantSSL:
InstantSSL Certificates are guaranteed to be the most cost effective 128bit SSL certificates available today. With multi-year, multi-save options, InstantSSL Certificates are a fraction of the price of comparable certificates from other CAs. Being technically identical to certificates issued by other CAs, InstantSSL Certificates are a new driving force in the widespread availability and affordability of SSL security for web servers.

About TrustToolbar:
TrustToolbar is an Internet Explorer plug-in, FREE to end users, that allows them to navigate directly to a website using common-sense information already associated with a company and its products. These include brands (such as Fujitsu, Boots, Tesco) and trademarks (such as Coca-Cola, No. 7, Sunny Delight) as well the Company Name (such as Microsoft Corp, Abbey National plc) no need to know or use the company URL!

Domain names and URLs are confusing and often meaningless to the customer - they have a better chance of navigating to a website using the company name they know! TrustToolbar provides users with a faster, friendlier and common sense way of navigating to a website.

TrustToolbar also incorporates access to keyword searches for products and services with fast access to multiple search engines directly from a single entry. TrustToolbar technology also protects users against web spoofing, fake address bar, on top attacks and semantic/obscured url attacks.

About Comodo:
Comodo provides next generation E-commerce Security Solutions. E-business is the most exciting revolution of our age and offers an unimaginably vast potential if - and only if - the challenges of real security are successfully met. Comodo offers "one stop" security for today's businesses and consumers; a comprehensive, user friendly infrastructure designed and integrated with exciting new hardware and software security and digital signature products and services.

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