Trust: Is it the Next Killer App?

Expert Reactions: Rebecca Nielsen, Senior Associate
Hilary Ward’s comments about the global nature of the trust issue are very much on point. One of the most significant changes that has happened in the Internet era is the global effect on communication and transactions. As Ms. Ward mentioned, worldwide companies can transfer large amounts of information between offices, allowing efficiencies in processing time by following time zones around the world. Individuals now have a global reach in searching for information or products. Non-Governmental Organizations can organize fundraising and relief efforts quickly, using internet communications to coordinate and mobilize.

Hilary Ward’s comments about the global nature of the trust issue are very much on point. One of the most significant changes that has happened in the Internet era is the global effect on communication and transactions. As Ms. Ward mentioned, worldwide companies can transfer large amounts of information between offices, allowing efficiencies in processing time by following time zones around the world. Individuals now have a global reach in searching for information or products. Non-Governmental Organizations can organize fundraising and relief efforts quickly, using internet communications to coordinate and mobilize. But these same capabilities also facilitate fraud, terrorism, money laundering, and other types of crime.   Without trust that the party on the other end of the transaction is who they claim to be, and that information exchanged in the transaction is protected from eavesdropping, the usefulness of the internet is severely limited to low value transactions. Criminals can be physically located in countries that allow them to be relatively safe from prosecution, but carry out attacks anywhere. Trust has to be built on a global foundation, and mechanisms must be put in place to ensure that entities in areas of the world that are not participating in the trusted infrastructure are prevented from acting within it.

 

For us these are issues that are so critical for them to just function, right.  So you have shared service centers in all different parts and we’re working with the sun and so this is such an important issue.  And has to be addressed but addressed in a way that’s not, you know, we use the word “threats” and absolutely there are-- very knowledgeable on all the threats that are occurring right now ‘cause we’re helping some of these folks to defend, so to speak, against that.  But I think inherent in trust is the inherent-- we got to go back to what we said in the beginning.  In order to get to the very fabric of a new framework we have to start working beyond the boundaries and start thinking in terms of collaboration, the rules-- I think contract law’s going to be a big, big part of this and especially in countries that, you know, where you-- the 170 countries that allow it; 170-- several that don’t, you don’t want to be in there necessarily.  So I think those things will help us get across to a global standard.  But, you know, accountability, all the things that are really important that will help us have that as part of the very fabric of the framework, but there’ll be folks who are helping to, you know, to help in brokering in that as well.  So but, yeah, it’s a total global issue.