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The first company in Canada to offer on-line, real-time credit card transactions over the Internet says secure commerce on the Internet can be a reality, if the right steps are taken.

"Selling products or services from a Web site without a secure, on-line credit card system is like having a retail store without a cash register, and asking your customers to phone back or mail in their order," says Rick Nugent, president of InternetSecure, based in Oakville, Ont. "It just doesn't make good business sense."

InternetSecure says one of its clients -- Toronto Love Connection Plus at www.tlcplus.com -- has been using electronic commerce for months and hasn't seen credit card approval security concerns that some in the industry are talking about.