A matter of trust

Security firm Comodo recently introduced a product for webmasters called UserTrust, that allows users to rate your site and displays the rating online. As it is a free product Comodo hopes that many web sites will use it, which will promote the idea that users should look for indicators that a site can be trusted before downloading or buying anything online.

I like Comodo. The company is open and friendly, it has a user forum where you can discuss its products and you can even chat with the MD online. And it has been instrumental in providing security tools and code signing certificates at prices that are affordable by ISVs and smaller businesses.

I like the idea of UserTrust as well. As a peer-reviewed system it obviously has the potential to be abused, but Comodo claims that systems are in place to prevent people causing harm to a site's reputation, or that of UserTrust, by posting false reviews. Feedback from users in the Comodo online forum actually played a part in developing the system.

UserTrust is a bit like McAfee's Site Advisor, but without the robotic tests that result in a site getting warning flags because the robot started to receive emails after signing up for a newsletter. And users don't have to install anything to see the ratings. When you sign up for UserTrust you get some JavaScript code that displays the Site Seal on your site. Users can click the seal to add their rating.

The only downside is that users need to be motivated to rate a site. As with a social bookmarking site, the first time they click on a UserTrust logo they must create an account, which they will then use when posting site ratings. And you apparently need to get five positive ratings from registered users before they will show up on the site seal. Tech-Pro.net is still waiting...

I hope UserTrust catches on and more webmasters will use it. Anything that increases trust online and helps separate the good sites from the bad has to be worth supporting.

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