American Express and GTE will issue Internet ID's to consumers and merchants; Major step in American Express' implementation of SET protocol for processing secure Internet credit card transactions by fourth quarter 1996.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 29, 1996--American Express today announced that it has awarded a contract to GTE to operate its Certificate Management Service to issue Internet ID's.

The ID's, which will be known as American Express NetID's, will be issued to consumers and merchants so they can conduct secure online charge and credit card transactions.

American Express NetID's -- also known as digital signature certificates -- are a critical element in the new Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) protocol for Internet commerce. Under the SET protocol, which GTE helped develop, consumers will be able to purchase goods and services using their credit cards over the Internet with an increased level of confidence that their card information will remain private and their identities will be protected.

American Express NetID's will be issued based on GTE's CyberTrust family of certificate authority products and services. American Express plans to process SET-compliant transactions for consumers and merchants over the Internet as early as the fourth quarter of this year, subject to the finalization of SET specifications.

"The backbone of any secure financial transaction, whether it be over the computer or by any other method, is the verification of a customer's identity," said David Bauman, senior vice president, Interactive Services at American Express. "The system we are building with GTE ensures a high level of confidence that one individual is not using another's computer `identity' and credit card number fraudulently. GTE's 15 years of experience in key management and certificate management systems provides a rock-solid foundation for us to offer the best protection for our customers and our merchants."

"As a trusted provider of credit cards and financial services, American Express is well positioned to be a global leader in secure electronic commerce," said Richard F. Umlah, vice president and general manager, GTE Network Systems Division. "We welcome American Express' support of the SET protocol and we look forward to working closely with the company to make digital certificates as ubiquitous as the American Express Card."

The American Express NetID's, which will be issued to consumers and merchants, are technically referred to as digital signature certificates. For American Express Cardmembers, this will be the electronic form of a charge or credit card with the digital equivalent of their own signature on the card. Much like more traditional, in-person transactions, the digital signature transmitted during an online purchase can be compared by both the merchant and American Express with the Cardmember's original digital signature.

According to American Express, a thorough registration process for consumers is critical to ensure the integrity of the Certificate Management Service. In the registration process, Cardmembers will be asked for a series of facts that only they possess regarding their existing American Express account. This process may be somewhat more demanding than what other companies will require but will ultimately result in better protection for the Cardmember. There will be no fees charged to Cardmembers for American Express NetID's.

The issuance of American Express NetID's with GTE is an important component of the company's strategy for creating a secure environment for Cardmembers and merchants who are conducting business over the Internet. As announced in February of this year, American Express has licensed technology from Microsoft Corp. for implementing the SET protocol which includes an American Express Internet gateway for receiving card transactions from Cardmembers and merchants with high security over the Internet. This gateway will permit merchants conducting Internet commerce to route information directly to American Express, thereby avoiding third- party surcharges on transactions for Cardmembers.

During the next few months, American Express will participate in the testing of trial versions of SET-compliant customer browser and merchant server software with Microsoft, Netscape and other companies, so it can process SET-compliant American Express and Optima Card transactions by the fourth quarter of this year.

These technologies for securing Internet transactions will become available in international markets during the first half of 1997.

With revenues of $20 billion in 1995, GTE is one of the largest publicly held telecommunications companies in the world. GTE is also the largest U.S.-based local telephone company and a leading cellular service provider -- with wireline and wireless operations that form a market area covering about one third of the country's population. Outside the United States, where GTE has operated for more than 40 years, the company serves over 6 million customers. GTE is also a worldwide leader in government and defense communications systems and equipment, aircraft passenger telecommunications, directories and telecommunications-based information services and systems. Additional information about GTE can be found on the Internet at http://www.gte.com.

American Express Co. is a diversified worldwide travel and financial services company founded in 1850. It is a leader in charge and credit cards, Travelers Cheques, travel, financial planning, investment products, insurance and international banking. The American Express Web site can be found on the Internet at http://www.americanexpress.com.

CONTACT: American Express

Cathy Cummings, 212/640-2145

or

GTE

Sandra Wheeler, 617/455-5958

[e-mail]