WITH ONE HIT ON THE KEYBOARD

In our century - a century of rampant development of information and communication technology (ICT), computer networks and automation, the value of information is steadily rising for rank-and-file users of personal computers and the internet, as well as for numerous businesses and government agencies that wish to ensure maximum security against attack for their activities. Thus the protection of electronic documents from forgery is today's number one priority. This task is quite easy to achieve. It is sufficient to put on a document a certain sequence of symbols acquired as a result of the cryptographic transformation of electronic data, i.e. an electronic digital signature (EDS), equivalent to one's own signature. The use of an EDS will reduce the time and expense spent on paper versions of documents and the amount of paperwork in offices. Businessmen will not have to cover long distances in order to sign a contract. We should be specific: this applies to foreign businessmen, because Azerbaijan has yet to enforce the law "On the electronic signature and electronic documents", although the e-signature is required to create an "electronic government" within the framework of the Electronic Azerbaijan global programme.

The law is obsolete?

A law was adopted by the Azerbaijani parliament more than four years ago - on 9 March 2004 which makes it possible to carry out a whole number of legal procedures such as the approval of contracts, invoices, rent and other agreements without the use of ink. It established a new legal basis for the use of an electronic signature in the circulation of electronic documents, law and the regulation of relations between participants in the electronic market as private individuals, legal entities, government agencies and municipalities with the use of an electronic signature. According to the law, an electronic signature and electronic documents can be used in all contexts, except for those stipulated by the law.

The circulation of electronic documents was granted official status four years ago and, immediately afterwards, several sectors such as banking, social security, electronic commerce and others acquired a whole range of indisputable advantages. But these advantages are still of a theoretical nature, said Osman Gunduz, president of the Azerbaijani Internet Forum and director of the Multimedia centre for information technology and systems, in an interview with R+.

The law "On the electronic signature" provides for the establishment of special centres to certify an electronic signature. According to the latest information, the information and computer centre of the Azerbaijani Ministry of Communications and Information Technology intends to set up a National Certification Centre (NCC) to solve the issue of certifying electronic signatures. Despite this, we still do not see any practical steps to enforce the law "On the electronic signature and the electronic document". I mean specific steps such as the establishment of infrastructure. It is also not clear whether the service to grant an electronic signature will be offered to all citizens without exception, or just to government agencies," said Gunduz.

At the same time, our interviewee believes that the law itself should definitely undergo certain changes as it was adopted "a long time ago" and since then there have been a great many technological changes in the international arena.

Banks begin signing

But there is some progress. According to Gunduz, government agencies, the banking community and even most rank-and-file users are ready to use the EDS. Although the law is still not fully effective at the wider public level, electronic signatures are already in use. Moreover, this practice was in force even before the law was adopted. For example, Azericard's processing centre is currently circulating all documents to Azerbaijani banks on the basis of an electronic signature. Elements of the electronic signature are also used in internet banking. The organization has purchased the equipment necessary to issue signatures and when the law actually takes effect, the centre will apply for registration as a licensing centre.

Further, scientists at the Information Technology Institute of the Azerbaijani National Academy of Sciences (ANAS) have already developed algorithms and software to effect the electronic circulation of documents with a digital signature and process them in the local network of ANAS.

"The country's government agencies have already established a useful exchange of information, while the Tax Ministry, the State Customs Committee and a number of other departments are already preparing domestic mechanisms for electronic document circulation. This is evidence of a great breakthrough in the development of information communication. But these relations should be formed and carried out in a disciplined manner, which is not the case today. This state of affairs puts a significant brake on the development of internet banking, electronic trade, the expansion of electronic business in Azerbaijan and its level of security," said the head of the Multimedia centre.

Gunduz stressed that the Baltic countries and neighbouring Russia and Ukraine are making quite extensive use of the electronic signature. For example, in Russia alone there are about 200 (!) local centres which certify the EDS. Ukraine has allocated more than $0.5 million to implement a project called "Virtual Notary" (ie. a certification centre) as part of the enactment of the law "On the electronic signature". It is not a lot of money, considering the inflow of oil dollars into the country.

The government has the final say

Meanwhile, in remarks to R+, Rufat Gulmammadov, head of the department for the development of the information society at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), pointed out that not everything is as bad as it appears at first sight and the extensive use of EDS is just around the corner. In his words, in order to enforce the law "On the electronic signature and electronic document", it is necessary to create a three-layer hierarchy headed by the National Certification Centre. "According to the law the use of electronic signatures in the country is not possible without such centres. Moreover, the law makes it quite clear that all other types of e-signatures, i.e. signatures without certificates, will have no legal force," said Gulmammadov.

Then there are plans to set up state intrasectoral certification centres and to adopt a single format for the intrasectoral circulation of documents within the framework of the e-government project (Electronic Government). Finally, according to the law, companies, banks and other private concerns can set up their own corporate certification centres - they are given free rein for the circulation of documents with an electronic signature. It is worth pointing out that some Azerbaijani banks are already using e-signatures for internet banking (a third-level certification centre is being used for this purpose).

There are currently several standards for the circulation of electronic document in the world and, according to our interviewee, Azerbaijan intends to use both Western experience and the format adopted by CIS countries. Specifically, MCIT experts have studied the experience of Russia, Turkey and the Baltic countries to create rules and a mechanism for enforcing the law, they have prepared an appropriate legislative base and standard acts and have signed a protocol of intent on cooperation with the Turkish telecommunications agency in the realm of e-signatures. In order to provide consultancy services, agreements have been signed with the same Turkish agency and the Russian Voskhod scientific-research institute (incidentally, the Russian Federation set up, in 2005, the first root certification centre to maintain a single state registry of the EDS at the Voskhod scientific-research institute). We have also entered into cooperation with the South Korean company ST. Korean specialists have already held a seminar on this subject and now they are developing a structure for the certification centres in compliance with the law adopted in 2004. Moreover, agencies in Latvia have expressed their readiness to advise Azerbaijan on the development of an electronic management programme for the e-signature and a system of electronic procurement.

Gulmammadov also highlighted the formation of internal mechanisms for electronic document circulation by a number of our ministries and departments, observing at the same time that without introducing single certification rules and a single mechanism for registering the EDS, society will not be able to make full use of the electronic structures created by the departments. For this reason, the MCIT is setting up the NCS. According to a ministry spokesman, if in the near future the Azerbaijani government approves the system developed by Korean specialists and signs an agreement on the allocation of a $30 million loan from the Korean government, by the beginning of 2009 there will be an opportunity to develop the structure of the NCS and interested departments will be able to start registering and issuing e-signatures.

The government is also in similar negotiations with the World Bank, which is ready to allocate another $30 million for the implementation of the electronic government project.

Plans await implementation

How quickly will a single information network appear that will allow all regions to connect to the system of electronic document circulation? According to Gulmammadov - the coordinator of the Electronic Azerbaijan project - the MCIT has already submitted documents on its action programme to government agencies and the public for consideration. The paramount task in implementing the project should be the acceleration of the development of information resources by central bodies of government. So, in the next 1-1.5 years, we will develop the resources of municipalities and other local government agencies, we will then unify information resources which are closely related and finally unite them into a single portal of government agencies. To this end, it is planned to create a single electronic network for data transfer and the AzDataCom single network of fast data transfer will play a role in solving the technical aspects.

In his turn, the director of the MCIT information and computer centre, Nail Mardanov, pointed out that owners of e-signatures will have a digital certificate which will indicate the name of its owner, the purpose in using the open key and so on.

Moreover, the MCIT intends to create its own depository of e-signature ID codes. It is the lack of a depository which is slowing down the development of e-commerce in our country. The depository will be created first for government agencies and then for private organizations. The first depository of e-signature ID codes will be created, if not this year, then next year. It has to be said that today only the International Bank of Azerbaijan offers a local system of electronic commerce. This being the case, foreign systems are being used to conduct electronic deals in the country.

Finally, the MCIT information and computer system has already announced an open tender to set up a national infrastructure of open keys to use the e-signature. Tender proposals will be accepted until 9 September, while the tender procedure will begin on 10 September.

In other words, despite everything, the Ministry of Communications is working hard to create the working levers of a system to issue and use e-signatures and statements by ministry representatives that e-signatures will be in use in 2009 make sense, especially as within the framework of the Electronic Azerbaijan state programme, and following admission to the Council of Europe convention on cybercrime, it is planned to set up a national centre for electronic security (AZ-CERT) in Azerbaijan. The centre will operate within the .az domain under the MCIT, will solve technical problems in the development and use of websites and will actively cooperate with government agencies and the population to provide information security. This means that AZ-CERT will have a significant role in the normal functioning of electronic documentation. For the time being, the large army of Azerbaijani users who wish to secure their information against hackers can use the special cards with a built-in microprocessor which are widely used in the USA. This is not the only technical means by which a user can use an e-signature. As alternative options, specialists cite an ordinary electronic password, an internet pad, a video scanner, and an eye and voice identification laser.