Six companies, First Data Corp, Compaq, TSA, Certicom, InterWorld and CyberSafe, are co-operating to develop the Account Authority Digital Signature (AADS) and Accredited Standards Committee (ASC) X9 digital payments standard. The companies want a secure digital payments infrastructure based on AADS for use on the internet and at point-of-sale terminals. An implementation of the standard might use a smart card and PIN, which when combined provide a digital signature for purchases. The partners explain that this arrangement should reduce the risk of fraud, by eliminating the need for third-party authorization. Each company will contribute a particular piece of the infrastructure. First Data Corp will provide AADS-enabled transaction processing services and smart cards. TSA will support AADS in software and services. Certicom says it will provide elliptical curve encryption technology. Compaq will ship components of its desktop, server and laptop product lines enabled for reading and signing AADS smart cards. InterWorld will offer digital signature support, and CyberSafe will provide a software development kit (SDK).
