Forwarded From: darek milewski <darekmat_private> Visa, Wells Fargo Deliver E-Payment Alternatives New Options for handling credit card transactions over the Web are emerging as cheaper and simpler alternatives to the dormant SET standard. As merchants continue to call for SET alternatives, two financial services giants--credit card company Visa International and online banking leader Wells Fargo & Co.--are trying a new approach: issuing digital certificates for use in SSL-based sessions. Visa, which co-developed SET with MasterCard International, will now let banks issue RSA Data Security X.509 digital certificates to merchants and will provide those banks with data collection, authorization, routing and settlement services for Internet transactions through its new Visa Payment Gateway. The gateway, to go live this summer, gives merchants using the Visanet point-of-sale network access to that same network through Web channels. That means there's no legacy-systems integration required by Visa USA's 6,000 member banks, many of which have characterized the Secure Electronic Transactions (SET) protocol as a gamble because of the implementation costs. Visa's gateway arrives just one week after Wells Fargo said it will offer merchants e-commerce services that combine Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption with digital certification. Wells Fargo has partnered with GTE's CyberTrust business unit to issue digital certificates to merchants. While both Visa and Wells Fargo still support SET, the moves underscore the difficulties that SET has faced. Few merchants and banks have installed SET-enabled systems because of their cost and complexity. In fact, less than 1 percent of U.S. merchants polled by Forrester Research said they are using or plan to use SET on their sites. Also, consumers have little incentive to use the e-wallet applications that SET requires, analysts said. Today, most Web storefronts protect credit card data using SSL encryption but do not validate users' identities with digital certificates. -- Jeffrey Schwartz http://www.internetwk.com/story/INW19990602S0002 -o- Subscribe: mail majordomoat_private with "subscribe isn". Today's ISN Sponsor: OSAll [www.aviary-mag.com]
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