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To: fred woodall who wrote (159)	4/21/1998 10:26:00 PM
From: fred woodall	Respond to of 1285

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Business, legal and government experts gather in Copenhagen later this week to discuss ways to promote security on the Internet and other electronic networks. More than 200 people from Europe, Japan, the United States and other countries are expected to attend a hearing on Thursday and Friday on digital signatures and encryption -- the technologies used to ensure that electronic exchanges are authentic and confidential. The hearing, sponsored by the Danish government and the European Commission, will clear the way for new European Union legislation on digital signatures. Such signatures are considered crucial for transactions ranging from filing tax forms with the government to buying goods over the Internet. "We see digital signatures as one of the main barriers for the development of electronic commerce," Per Sorensen, an official in the Danish Research and Information Technology Ministry, told Reuters. He said rules were needed at national, European and international level to address questions such as legal recognition of digital signatures, consumer protection and "when something goes wrong, who is liable?" Denmark has already proposed a law on the question and the Commission, the EU executive, is set to propose EU rules on digital and other electronic signatures in May, taking into account input from the hearing. The United States has proposed that countries draw up an international convention on recognition of electronic signatures for legal and commercial transactions. The Commission, in a theme paper prepared for the hearing, said rules should set minimum requirements for "certification authorities" -- or third parties who verify the identity of digital signatories -- and for relevant software and hardware. It said it also wanted advice on liability, specifically how to protect consumers without setting rules that are so strict that companies hesitate to serve as certification authorities. The hearing will also address the broader question of how the market for cryptography products and services is developing, looking at issues such as standards, business use, and export controls that interfere with intra-EU trade. It will include a session on law enforcement, reflecting concerns that widespread use of cryptography could interfere with efforts to fight organized crime and terrorism. Sorensen said it would focus on technical aspects rather than on the more controversial question of whether governments should restrict the use of encryption, as France has done.