TRUSTe Launches New Data Privacy Certifications to Help UK Businesses Address High Consumer Privacy Concerns and Build Trust

LONDON, June 28, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

One month after launching TRUSTed Consent Manager to help businesses to address the EU Cookie Directive, global privacy management leader TRUSTe is introducing five new data privacy certification solutions to help UK businesses build trust and address the high level of concern expressed by consumers over privacy. 

The new Privacy Certification Solutions enable businesses to establish and follow best practices for managing customer information in accordance to UK data privacy standards. Once a business is certified, it can display the green TRUSTe Certified Privacy Seal on their site. This trust mark is rapidly becoming the de facto standard for online privacy worldwide. Independent research shows it already has 50 per cent consumer awareness in the UK.

The TRUSTe Certification Solutions are available to manage privacy for all major online channels including websites, mobile sites, mobile apps, and third-party data collection. The solutions include full-service Consumer Dispute Resolution Services that enable businesses to quickly and easily address consumer privacy complaints. TRUSTe's unique combination of privacy solutions enable a business to address regulatory compliance while building customer trust in order to drive engagement and protect their brand.

The potential for businesses to influence consumer behaviour by demonstrating strong privacy practices is underscored by research conducted by Harris Interactive in 2012 and published in the TRUSTe Privacy Index: British Consumer Confidence Edition.  The study indicated that 90 per cent of consumers were concerned about their privacy online while 88 per cent would not conduct business with companies that they felt were failing to safeguard their online privacy. New research conducted with 2000 adults across Great Britain by Harris Interactive last month shows that 1 in every 2 consumers is already aware of the TRUSTe green privacy seal. This is only likely to increase as adoption of TRUSTe's Privacy Certification Solutions in the UK grows.

Chris Babel, CEO of TRUSTe said, "Good online privacy practices are not just about meeting regulatory compliance, but also building consumer trust.

With the underlying reality that data is easier to collect, cheaper to store and faster to analyse than ever before, it is even more important that companies can easily demonstrate to consumers that they take privacy seriously. TRUSTe's Certified Privacy Seal does just that. 

We have helped thousands of companies manage their online privacy practices for 15 years, and it is a natural step to extend these services to the UK market."

This announcement comes on the heels of TRUSTe's launch of the EU Cookie Audit and Consent Manager; products designed to address the requirements of the EU Cookie Directive. Within a few days of the 26 May 2012 UK enforcement deadline of this directive, the UK Information Commissioners' Office received over 160 complaints. TRUSTe offers a third party dispute resolution service as part of its certification services which gives customers someone to turn to. Likewise, businesses have a route to swiftly resolve disputes, minimising the need for ICO intervention. In 2011 TRUSTe successfully handled over 8500 customer privacy disputes.

Lindsey Greig, Managing Editor, DataGuidance said "The EU Cookie Directive has put a light on data privacy.  More than just meeting the regulatory requirement, businesses can seize this as an opportunity to improve transparency, choice and accountability for their customers. Approaches, such as TRUSTe's privacy certification programme, are excellent ways for businesses to ensure good privacy practices and demonstrate publicly that it is a brand that consumers can trust."

Last year participation in TRUSTe's global privacy certification programmes grew by over 60%. In 2011, over 4000 businesses were certified under the TRUSTed Websites programme. There are now over 7000 different urls displaying TRUSTe's privacy seal.

Notes to Editors

1    TRUSTe is the leading global provider of online privacy solutions for business, offering a broad suite of technologies and certifications to help companies build trust and increase engagement across their online channels, including websites, mobile apps, advertising, and cloud services. Over 5,000 companies, including top international brands like Apple, eBay, LinkedIn and Microsoft, rely on TRUSTe to build trust and address evolving and complex privacy challenges. TRUSTe's green Certified Privacy Seal is widely recognised and trusted by millions of consumers worldwide as a sign of responsible privacy practices. For additional information on TRUSTe please visit http://www.truste.co.uk  

2    Further details about TRUSTe privacy certifications are available in the 2011 TRUSTe Transparency Report http://www.truste.com/about-TRUSTe/transparency-report This document provides an in-depth summary and analysis of the 8500 consumer privacy disputes TRUSTe processed in 2011 and explains the processes and procedures TRUSTe uses to certify companies and enforce their privacy certifications.

3    Harris Interactive conducted a comprehensive consumer privacy survey on behalf of TRUSTe with 2000 Online GB Adults aged 16-64 from 24-31 May 2012. Full details of the findings of this UK Consumer Research Study will be published in July. To request a copy of the full research report contact eleanor@theconversationco.com

4    Full details of TRUSTe products now available in the UK including the TRUSTe certification suite: (TRUSTed Websites, TRUSTed Apps, TRUSTed Data and TRUSTed Email) are available at http://www.truste.com/eu-privacy. TRUSTed Data, which certifies the privacy policies of third party data aggregators, such as advertising networks, is also available across the EU. Further details can be found at: http://www.truste.com/products-and-services/enterprise_privacy/data-collection-certification

5    For TRUSTe UK media enquiries and interview requests please contact Eleanor Treharne-Jones at The Conversation Company on +44(0)7811-093648 or +44(0)20-7812-0664 or e-mail eleanor@theconversationco.com.