Problem

The main problem is the inability to identify the owners of a website

The main problem with conducting business on-line is the fact that we can not identify the owners of a website.  

We don't identify ourselves  in every day life this way.  Why do we allow it on the Internet?

Registering a web site on all top domains (.com, .net, .org, .biz, .info, etc.) does not require any sort of buyer verification, and the purchaser can remain completely anonymous.  Without any other information, a visitor has no means of verifying the authenticity and credibility of any particular web site hence creating the opportunity for fraud, identity theft, and “phishing”.  Without an accepted means of validating on-line business sites, the average visitor remains vulnerable to fraudulent websites. Because of this the credibility of all websites is questioned, especially the smallest ones. This leads to monopolization of the Internet, as visitors only trust the biggest and most known websites.

In fact, a longitudinal study done by the University of Southern California, Los Angeles between 2001 and 2007 found a significant increase in the general public’s distrust of the Internet.  Such a perception may be well-founded as the incidence of Internet crime is on the rise. You can read about the specific numbers in the article about Cyber crime on the Internet.

Despite decreased consumer confidence, the actual number of on-line transactions is increasing every year.  From this we see that the demand and desire to do business on the Internet is increasing, while the environment is becoming less friendly and more dangerous for companies and customers.

Given that the Internet is a multi-trillion dollar industry, is it a responsible practice to not utilize a secure, rock-solid business verification system?