'Industry not government leads way in online standards': Timms

A UK cross-industry initiative to create secure transaction best practice celebrated its fourth anniversary this week with a glowing commendation from E-minister Stephen Timms, who admitted it had been more effective than government schemes would have proven.

tScheme is an independent regulatory body publishing agreed best practice for secure transactions. Its members include Barclays, BT, IBM, Microsoft, Royal Bank of Scotland, Royal Mail and Vodafone.

Speaking at a conference held on Wednesday to mark the anniversary, Timms said: "tScheme represents the regulatory model at its best" and praised the organisation's "flexibility and adaptability" - strengths which he admitted may not have been achieved if legislation and government policy making had played a part in the initiative.

Stephen Upton, CEO of tScheme, was in agreement with Timms. He told silicon.com he believes it is important the organisation has been self-regulated. While he is grateful for continued close alliances with the government he believes the speed at which the industry can move is far more conducive to setting standards than the rather sluggish speed at which the government moves on tech matters.

But Timms is in favour of anything that can make the online world more secure for the UK public.

He highlighted the advances of broadband and mobility as two areas where technology is improving lives and businesses across the UK but added that "they have brought in their train new risks".

"Always on means always vulnerable," he added warning of the 24/7 dangers of broadband connections

"There are serious threats and we need to provide reassurances," said Timms, acknowledging the fact that organisations such as tScheme have done much to provide those assurances - often succeeding where government has been unable to.

"We cannot legislate away all these problems even if they were subject to UK jurisdiction - and they certainly aren't," said Timms.

But glowing praise from government does not equate to 'job done' for tScheme.

The organisation's chairman Andy Ross, whose day job is ecommerce director at the Royal Bank of Scotland, said he wants to see tScheme become "an industry respected standard" which forms a "mandatory part" of all transactions.