Website Security Seals Perception

What it measures

Three items assess whether a website displays visible signals of third-party security validation — including trust seals from organisations like TRUSTe, security certificates from providers like VeriSign, and general audit indicators. Operationalises security credentialling as a tangible cue.

Response format

7-point Likert (1=strongly disagree, 7=strongly agree)

Scale items

• There were signs or symbols on the site placed there by third-party companies indicating that the site had been reviewed or audited for sound business practices.
• There were trust seals present (e.g., TRUSTe).
• There were seals of companies stating that my information on this site is secure (e.g., Verisign).

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

One of the Bart et al. (2005) website subscales. Items reference specific third-party providers (TRUSTe, VeriSign) that may have changed since publication — researchers should update examples to current equivalents. Discriminant validity supported.

Recommended companion scales

Citation

Bart, Y., Shankar, V., Sultan, F., & Urban, G. L. (2005). Are the drivers and role of online trust the same for all web sites and consumers? A large-scale exploratory empirical study. Journal of Marketing, 69(4), 133–152.

Keywords