Authentication for E-Commerce - the FAST Project.

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 6, 1999--

The Financial Services Technology Consortium (FSTC) is proud to announce the formation of the Financial Agent Secure Transaction (FAST) project. Participants intend to define an Internet-based, technologically neutral framework, which authenticates transactions between parties unknown to each other.

Authentication of identity and information is critical to parties involved in any type of transaction, particularly transactions that are conducted in a non-face-to-face environment. Currently, authentication is available only when two parties are already known to each other or share a common credential authority. Even then, the parties may be asked to exchange sensitive information on-line. These authentication issues limit the growth of E-Commerce because key components of trust, such as identity, legal age, or sufficient funds cannot be verified.

"FAST will enhance the brand strength of financial institutions by making them 'trust brokers' on the Internet. This project will open the way for new products and services that financial institutions can offer to their customers," says FSTC President Adam Backenroth, vice president, Chase Manhattan Bank. "We expect FAST to complement existing initiatives like Identrus and allow financial institutions to leverage their existing infrastructures and relationships with their customers."

FAST will strive to make use of and integrate existing authentication technologies and platforms, providing technology-neutral standards, rules, procedures and business practices as necessary to enable transactions to be processed between unknown parties. To foster the growth of E-Commerce and to facilitate the many organizations that are placing "core business" processes on the Internet, a secure method of authentication is necessary.

"Authentication is vital to building trust for next generation e-services," said Roberto Medrano, General Manager of HP's Internet Security Division. "Financial institution-based trust brokers are a key enabler to accelerating the deployment of trusted transactions for conducting business and providing services on the Internet."

Phase One of the FAST Project, a six-month effort that was launched in November, will consist of research, definitions, needs assessment, gap analysis, solution options and recommendations, including the outline for a Phase Two pilot. The following organizations intend to participate in the FAST Project: American Bankers Association, Bank Administration Institute, The Chase Manhattan Bank, Citigroup, Department of Treasury, Equifax Secure, First Union, Hewlett-Packard Company, The Huntington National Bank, Mellon Financial Corporation, NACHA - the Electronic Payments Association, National Center for Manufacturing Sciences, National Institute of Standards and Technology, NYCE Corporation, STAR Systems, Inc., Unisys, and Wells Fargo, with advisory assistance from the Federal Reserve Banks of Boston and Chicago.

There is still time to join Phase One and be in on the formative stage. Those wishing to participate in the FAST Project may contact FAST Project Manager Susan Valenzuela at 724-933-3204 or via e-mail: [e-mail]. Additional project details may be found on FSTC's web site: www.fstc.org.

FSTC is a not-for-profit research organization comprised of banks, financial service firms, industry partners, national laboratories, universities and government agencies. Its goal is to sponsor collaborative research and development of technical projects affecting the financial industry. For more information, contact FSTC Headquarters at 312-527-6724.