New Poll: Credit Card Fraud Fears Are 'Major Barrier' to E-Commerce
Cyota's 'SecureClick' Offers Solution to E-Commerce Fraud: Customers Can Shop Online Without Revealing Their Card Number

NEW YORK, April 27 /PRNewswire/ -- A new survey of Internet users found that consumer fears of online credit card security are a major barrier to expanded e-commerce. The survey, conducted by Washington DC-based SWR Worldwide for Cyota Corporation, a New York City technology firm, found that:

Major Security Concerns ...

Two thirds (64%) of Internet users are ``very concerned'' about the security of their credit card information and credit card transaction online.

Mean Less Online Buying.

Concern over online credit card security limits in the purchasing behavior of many Internet users. A majority (55%) of Internet users say they purchase only ``small ticket'' items or do not make purchases online because of their concern about the security of their credit card information online.

In fact, most Internet users say they would be more likely to shop online if they felt secure about their credit card information online. Eight in ten (79%) say they would be ``much more likely'' (37%) or ``somewhat more likely'' (42%) to shop online if they were convinced their credit card information was secure.

Security is a Competitive Advantage

Most Internet users would prefer to use a credit card that didn't require them to give out their credit card information when making purchases online. Nearly nine in ten (87%) of Internet users say they would be either ``very likely'' (52%) or ``somewhat likely'' (35%) to use a credit card that didn't require them to give out their credit card number instead of one that did to make purchases online.

Security = Sales

The freedom from having to give out their credit card information when making a purchase online appears to free up Internet users spending habits as well. Two thirds (65%) of Internet users say they would spend ``much more'' (19%) or ``somewhat more'' (46%) money online than they do now if they didn't have to give out their credit card information when making a purchase.

Cyota released the survey as it today unveiled SecureClick -- a groundbreaking advance in online payment security that enables consumers to never send their real card number over the Internet to make purchases.

When purchasing through the SecureClick system, the customer never uses their credit/debit card number, instead using a one-time ``disposable'' transaction number that only the authorized customer can access. The SecureClick system also checks the customer's final invoice against their original purchase order for discrepancies. ``As the poll suggests, there is a major psychological barrier among cardholders paying on the web: fear of theft and fraud,'' said Mr. Kelly Doherty -- a Cyota official who was Vice Chairman of Bankers Trust. ``SecureClick effectively resolves that barrier.''

``Many consumers were shocked by recent news reports of the theft of hundreds of thousands of credit card numbers from CD Universe and other merchants. For many, the effect has been much greater apprehension toward -- or altogether stopping -- use their cards online. At least temporarily,'' said Mr. Teddy Flatau -- Cyota's Internet team leader and a prominent Cryptography expert.

SecureClick -- a service provided by credit/debit card issuers for their customers -- has far-reaching implications for the online retail industry, as well as for the role of card issuers in the online shopping experience.

Ira Rimerman, a former President of Citibank's worldwide credit card division and now a Cyota official, said, ``The poll findings clearly demonstrate that consumers would use a particular credit card more often were it to offer online security. Indeed, the SecureClick system creates an unprecedented, direct bond between the online consumer and their card issuer - - a relationship built on trust and confidence.''

Such competitive advantage to card issuers is a major factor in the SecureClick growth strategy. Participating card issuers will have a logo permanently installed on their customer's browser-making them first in the all-important ``wallet'' of Internet users.

``This survey clearly shows that security remains the most vexing problem for e-commerce,'' said Mr. Naftali Bennett, Cyota's CEO. ``SecureClick provides a revolutionary solution to this.

``Best of all,'' adds Bennett, ``SecureClick's benefits are simple to attain -- customers with participating cards can buy at all merchant sites, immediately.''

The development of the security system is being done under the supervision of Professor Adi Shamir, a world-renowned cryptographer (and the co-inventor of the RSA encryption). Shamir also deals with the customer authentication aspects of SecureClick.

Other Cyota officials include Roger O. Goldman, a former Executive Vice President of Nat West Bank Corp who advises on corporate strategy, and Anthony Castanon, a former Chief of Operations at CitiBank Latin America who deals with the operational aspects of the system.

Founded in 1999 by four veterans of elite intelligence units in the Israeli Defense Force, Cyota is headquartered in New York City with an R&D subsidiary in Israel. Cyota Inc. is a privately held company, backed by a global venture capital corporation.

The results of the SWR Worldwide/Cyota Survey are based on an online survey of 816 Internet users nationwide. The survey was conducted April 10- 16, 2000 and has an overall margin of sampling error of 3.5 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level.