Computer hardware and computer software for use in electronic business transactions; encryption software, electronic encryption keys, computer software used for electronic validation of digital certificates; computer software used for digital signatures authentication; software for secure data storage and retrieval and transmission of confidential customer information used by individuals; magnetically encoded credit cards, magnetically encoded charge cards, magnetically encoded bank cards, magnetically encoded payment cards, magnetically encoded debit cards and magnetic encoded card readers; computer software designed to enable smart cards to interact with terminals and readers; telecommunications equipment, namely, telephones, facsimile machines and telecommunication switches; point of sale transaction terminals, namely, cash registers; computer software for transmitting, displaying and storing transaction, identification and financial information for use in the financial services, banking and telecommunications industries; radio frequency identification devices, namely, transponders; electronic verification apparatus for verifying authentication of charge cards, bank cards, credit cards, debit cards and payment cards; and computer software for automating a process for authentication of identity using existing databases in connection with the issuance and management of digital certificates used for authentication or encryption of digital communications, or authentication of a digital signature in an electronic transaction or communication over a global computer network or other computer networks