Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 4th June 2002

(Left to right)- Amir Rashid, Business Development Manager, Comtrust, Dan Emory, CISSP Director, IT Security Management Tariq Habib, Senior Manager Business and Technology and Acting General Manager, Comtrust ; Abdul Muttalib Mohd. Mustafa, General Manager, Oman Insurance Company and Ivan Jones, Vice-President e-Business, Mastercard at the Secure e-Payments 2002 held in Dubai.
Behind left -Saoud al Shamsi, Sales Manager, Comtrust and Manoj Kumar, Manager, Oman Insurance Company (right)

Four industry leaders in the field of e-commerce joined forces today for a comprehensive seminar in Dubai, to highlight the role played by e-Payments in the development of e-commerce throughout the UAE. Meeting at Secure e-Payments 2002, a trend setting and first of its kind event in the entire Middle East region - Comtrust, MasterCard International, Oman Insurance and Quality Assurance Institute discussed a wide range of topics concerning e-Payments, being regarded one of the important components of the value chain for the majority of e-business initiatives. Being a pioneering event focusing exclusively on electronic payments through credit cards and the related security issues, it provided the participants with a unique opportunity to share the knowledge and expertise of e-Payments industry leaders.

“The ability to offer secure e-Payments to customers forms the cornerstone of the overall success strategy for a majority of e-business initiatives", said Tariq Habib, Senior Manager Business and Technology and Acting General Manager, Comtrust. “The event highlighted the challenges and the revenue opportunities that exist in the UAE for companies and organizations still contemplating the move into the virtual world. By discussing industry trends, identifying exposure points for Internet merchants such as fraud and chargebacks, we can reach our goal of delivering secure e-Payments to end users and minimizing business losses for Internet merchants.”

Bringing attention to the current industry situation, Ivan Jones, Vice President E-Business, MasterCard International said, “Security and authentication of remote payments are critical issues facing financial institutions and their account holders today, and profitable e-commerce will only become a reality when online payments can be guaranteed effectively and efficiently. MasterCard addresses these concerns with proactive, cost-effective, online security solutions based on robust design to help build incremental online transaction activity.”

The event focused on such topics as:

• E-Payments industry landscape and trends including identification of threats and vulnerabilities of Internet fraud Experienced by merchants.

• Upcoming industry solutions for credit card holders' authentication

• Means of delivering high levels of trust and security to online customers and merchants

• Introduction of comprehensive risk management programme involving e-insurance covering Internet transactions and fraud

• Risk management guidelines for existing and potential Internet merchants for offering secure e-payments

Speaking on this occasion, Mr. Abdul Muttalib Mustafa Mohamad, General Manager, Oman Insurance Group reiterated his company’s commitment to help drive electronic commerce growth in the region by offering insurance protection against chargebacks. “We have designed specialized e-insurance products to make the e-payments process more secure and trustworthy for the merchants,” he said. His colleague, Manoj Kumar, Manager at Dubai Internet City branch for Technology Products of Oman Insurance Company added, “Our chargeback insurance product should allay the fears of merchants going online. This insurance pays out the merchant’s liability to the acquiring bank for a “Card Holder Not Present” transaction in circumstances where the use of the credit card was unauthorized and made fraudulently.”

As Dan Emory, CISSP Director, IT Security Management, Quality Assurance Institute outlined on this occasion, “The lack of trust is the single weakest link and barrier for trust and secure payments technology. However, the value proposition of secure payments cannot be ignored and can be measured in the reduction of invoicing costs, payment processing and dispute resolution.”
The event was a huge success, attracting over 180 delegates from all major industries including the banking sector, Government and the private sector.

One such attendee, Yasmeen Javaid, Cash Management Head, Mashreqbank said of the event, "Online banking is an inevitable way forward and the Secure. E-Payments seminar went a long way towards surfacing and demystifying major issues related to using the medium. Industry experts addressed the concerns of all the parties participating in the transaction, which was particularly useful. Well organized and timely!"

Reji Nair, IT Manager, Destinations of the World commented, "The holiday market demands that Destinations of the World needs to be in the Internet space to provide its customers with an efficient and capable service. However, in the past the organisation has had concerns regarding certain security aspects of online payment solutions. The Secure E-Payments 2002 event has shown us directions and answers to these problems, with which we can progress in the near future."