2011 Online Trust Alliance Trust Scorecard Highlights Increase in EV SSL Adoption

Online, May 10, 2011 (Newswire.com) - GlobalSign (www.globalsign.com), one of the longest established Certification Authorities (CA), and specialists in SSL security, welcomes the EV SSL growth identified in the 2011 Online Trust Scorecard and Honor Roll survey results announced today by the Online Trust Alliance. As an OTA member, GlobalSign is an advocate for the best practices report which seeks to counter email and Internet fraud, and provides valuable advice to aid consumers to protect their brand and maintain consumer trust.

For the past three years, the Online Trust Alliance (OTA) has published an annual online safety report that examines the adoption of proven countermeasures against deception and identity theft that help protect online brands and consumers. The Scorecard and Honor Roll data is collected and analyzed by OTA staff and various OTA members, including GlobalSign, to identify achievements and recognize organizations for their commitment to adopting key security measures. The report underscores measures that mitigate account takeovers, breaches, email spoofing, and phishing attacks. The adoption of Extended Validation SSL (EV SSL) Certificates was one of the solutions highlighted by the report.

OTA research showed an increase in EV SSL usage of 7.1% among retail and banking sites since 2010, with 45% of websites now secured across the sector . Fortune 100 consumer-facing websites saw a similar growth of 9.3%, with 27% of websites employing EV SSL in total. Over 35,000 certificates were issued overall, reflecting a 68% growth over last year.

With increased levels of phishing attacks, online fraud, and identity theft GlobalSign has helped organizations of all sizes adopt EV SSL and seen a steadily growing uptake in EV SSL in the past few years, as all types of organizations operating online see the need to elevate their site image, protect their brand from copy cat websites and ensure that data is securely transmitted. By activating the green address bar and displaying the organization name, EV SSL immediately assures visitors that a site is legitimate and secure. The issuance process involves rigorous verification and auditing, so users can be confident that the site is authentic and the organization is committed to their security. The use of EV SSL enhances customer trust and allows organizations to position themselves against other leading brands who have already adopted the protocol.

"GlobalSign is a strong advocate for EV SSL Certificates to help secure online transactions and protect consumers from the increase in cyber crime. We are delighted to see EV SSL featured as a security measure in the OTA scorecard and will continue our efforts in association with the OTA and other OTA members to encourage the implementation of best online security practices." says Steve Waite, Chief Marketing Officer, GMO GlobalSign Inc.

Although the adoption rates of EV SSL are increasing, GlobalSign strongly agrees with the OTA that the overall adoption remains below adequate levels for complete consumer protection. GlobalSign plans to help further promote and educate consumers about the benefits of EV SSL Certificates in efforts to help meet the goal established by OTA: that all consumer financial institutions, commerce sites and the consumer facing governmental sites migrate to EV SSL Certificates on all sites which require consumer login or registration and either provide access to or collect personal and financial data by October 1, 2011 (Source: OTA 2011 Online Trust Scorecard and Honor Roll).

GlobalSign is highly focused on providing organizations with the strongest SSL security in the market. By offering a simplified, competitively priced, feature packed range of SSL, with free inclusion of Server Gated Cryptography (strong security), and unlimited server licensing, GlobalSign makes the strongest levels of SSL accessible to all online retailers, from small and medium enterprises to larger household brands. Organizations with existing non-EV SSL Certificates can easily upgrade to GlobalSign's EV SSL and benefit from multi-year savings and promotional pricing.

To increase adoption of EV SSL, GlobalSign is offering 40% off EV SSL Certificates. For more information on this promotion, please visit https://www.globalsign.com/ev-ssl-promo/

About GMO GlobalSign
Established in 1996 and as a WebTrust accredited public certificate authority, GlobalSign offers publicly trusted SSL Certificates, EV SSL, Managed SSL Services, Code Signing for use on all platforms including mobile devices. Its Trusted Root solution uses the widely embedded GlobalSign Root CA certificates to provide immediate PKI trust for Microsoft Certificate Services and internal PKI, eliminating the costs of using untrusted Root Certificates. Its partnership with Adobe to provide Certified Document Services (CDS) enables secure digitally signed PDF documents, certified transcripts and e-invoices. These core Digital Certificate solutions allow its thousands of authenticated customers to conduct secure online transactions, data transfer, distribution of tamper-proof code, and protection of online identities for secure email and access control. The company has a history of innovation within the online security industry and has offices in the US, UK, Belgium, Japan, and China.

About GMO Internet Group
GMO Internet Group is a leading force in the Internet industry offering one of the most comprehensive ranges of Internet services worldwide. The group is the top provider of domain registration, web hosting, ecommerce, and payment processing solutions in Japan and operates a host of other Internet services including global online security services, search engine marketing and online securities trading. At the center of the group is GMO Internet, Inc. (TSE: 9449) headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Please visit www.gmo.jp/en for further details.