The Ministry of Information and Communications June 28 issued a licence to the CK Technology and Communications Joint Stock Co, Vietnam's sixth digital signature authentication provider.

The company will be able to offer the service to agencies, organisations, individuals, websites and other software developers.

Minister Le Doan Hop called on the company to join hands with State management agencies to disseminate knowledge and legislation on digital signatures in an attempt to promote the use of e-transactions.

Digital signature authentication is now used in many developed countries to ensure the safety of public e-transactions.

The e-transaction market will continue its upward trend as e-government begins to be applied and the number of internet users is predicted to increase to 45-50 million users by 2012.

Previously, the Vietnam Post and Telecommunications Group, the Nacencomm Technologies Joint Stock Co, the BKAV Network Security Co, the military-run telecoms group Viettel and the FPT Information System Corporation had been given the go-ahead to provide the service.

A master plan to develop e-commerce for the 2011-15 period approved by the Prime Minister in 2010 targeted official recognition from foreign digital-signature authentication organisations by 2015./.