§ Mr. Stephen O'BrienTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of the impact that a lack of trust in security has on use of the internet in the UK. [146139]
§ Mr. TimmsWe have long known that users' trust and confidence in the internet would impact on its uptake. This was recognised in the September 1999 report from the Performance and Innovation Unit, "e-commerce@its.best.uk" which identified trust as one of the three pillars which would support the adoption of the internet in the UK. Studies into consumer behaviour in 2001 and 2002 ("Informing Consumers About e-commerce and "Internet and Cross Border Shopping") showed that the perception of credit card 445W fraud was a significant concern to on-line consumers. That said, on-line shopping represented 6 per cent. of all UK retail in 2002, and was set to grow to £14 billion in 2003 as part of a continuing growth in use of the internet throughout the economy. Our latest study—the "International Benchmarking Study" published by DTI in November 2003—showed that the impact of a lack of confidence on internet usage appears to be receding. It was also noted that security and trust were seen as less of a barrier to internet usage by UK business than was the case in previous benchmarking studies.