VeriSign Enables Taxpayer Confidence in Free Electronic Filing Web Sites

VeriSign, Inc. (www.verisign.com), a provider of intelligent infrastructure services for the Internet and telecommunications networks, today announced that a majority of tax preparation Web sites certified by the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to offer free electronic filing in 2005 are being secured by VeriSign. 

Web sites leveraging VeriSign services are protected by Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificates that allow consumers to verify the level of security available on a tax preparation site prior to electronically filing their returns.

For the 2004 tax year, the IRS has extended free electronic tax filing to a larger range of taxpayers by delivering the service through 20 tax preparation Web sites, 90 percent of which are secured by VeriSign® SSL Certificates, while 80 percent display a VeriSign security seal.

By using VeriSign SSL Certificates, these Web sites have taken steps to protect sensitive taxpayer information and ensure secure payment processing.

Taxpayers can determine if a site is protected by VeriSign by looking for the VeriSign® Secured™ Seal, the industry's most recognized and reliable trust mark. If the VeriSign Secured Seal is not present, users can click on the closed padlock icon at the bottom of their Web browser to find security information.

"The presence of SSL-based security is an essential part of any Web exchange involving confidential information," said Chad Kinzelberg, vice president, VeriSign Security Services.

SSL Certificates protect the transfer of sensitive data on Web sites, intranets, and extranets at a minimum of 40-bit encryption.  VeriSign certificates are used in a wide range of consumer e-commerce Web sites and their use is often denoted by the presence of the VeriSign Secured Seal.  VeriSign SSL certificates and the VeriSign Secured Seal help protect Web users against online threats, such as digital identity theft and fraud.

Display of the VeriSign Secured Seal on Web sites indicates use of a security solution from VeriSign that authenticates the identity of a user, secures the users' payment processing, and protects sensitive customer information during online transactions.