[LINK] Re: Dealing with the Tax Office over the Internet

[Chirgwin, Richard]

At least Aust Post has the chance to project some kind of credibility as a
provider of this kind of service. 

I couldn't make any comment on the service offered by GSTPay - the page
crashed Netscape twice. The third time, no crash, but after about fifteen
minutes, it was still loading. Oh, and the design assumes all users run
their browsers full-screen, and that we like waiting for 21 GIFs. I know
there's no *necessary* connection between home page design and security but
it doesn't boost confidence.

Looking further into the site, I remember these guys. Hundreds and hundreds
of pages of terms and conditions - all as huge PDFs - which you're supposed
to digest before attempting a BAS online; and the gist of the T&C is "all
care but no responsibility and if you missed page 122 para 76(b) that's your
fault".

Skipping security: I toured every single page of the site with the exception
of the PDFs; nowhere on the site does GSTPay Pty Ltd offer its ABN or ACN.
NOT EVEN ON THE PAYMENT FORM
(http://www.gstpay.com.au/subscribe/payment.html) - where I would have
thought publication of the ABN was a legal requirement?

We're supposed to trust these people when their own grasp of regulation is
suspect; while I shouldn't risk libelling anyone



> -----Original Message-----
> From: Tom Worthington [mailto:tom.worthington@tomw.net.au]
> Sent: Monday, 27 November 2000 8:21
> To: link@www.anu.edu.au
> Subject: [LINK] Re: Dealing with the Tax Office over the Internet
> Importance: Low
> 
> 
> I wrote Fri, 10 Nov 2000 09:47:34 +1100:
> >...Perhaps a digital signature is overkill for the BAS. A simple SSL 
> >protected web form might be sufficient. Authentication could 
> be by the 
> >payments to a bank account...
> 
> Australia Post's POSTbillpay system 
> <http://www.auspost.com.au/postbillpay/> and a company called GSTPay 
> <http://www.gstpay.com.au/> appear to have implemented 
> something like this. 
> But why couldn't ATO do it and save the business having to 
> register and pay 
> a third party for the service?
> 
> See "Pay the GST on the net" by Mandy Bryan, AFR Nov 24: 
> http://www.afr.com.au/premium/it/2000/11/24/FFX2BGTBVFC.html
> 
> "...For a small fee, businesses can lodge and pay GST 
> electronically via 
> www.POSTbillpay.com, the internet billpay service it launched 
> earlier this 
> month. POSTbillpay interfaces with centrally hosted business activity 
> statement software, GSTPay, which enables businesses to 
> review, lodge and 
> pay GST online..."
> 
> The POSTbillpay system allows registration on-line and then 
> passes the user 
> to the "GSTpay" system, which asks for: Subscription Key, 
> ABN, Client Name, 
> Postal Address, Suburb, State and Postcode.
> 
> I didn't proceed past the registration screen. Can anyone 
> explain what the 
> Subscription Key is; if the subscriber needs to obtain 
> digital keys from 
> ATO; if the keys are held on the client's computer or of the 
> GSTpay system; 
> and if this meets the Gatekeeper security requirements?
> 
> 
> Tom Worthington FACS tom.worthington@tomw.net.au Ph: 0419 496150
> Director, Tomw Communications Pty Ltd ABN: 17 088 714 309
> http://www.tomw.net.au PO Box 13, Belconnen ACT 2617
> Visiting Fellow, Computer Science, Australian National University
> Publications Director & Past President, Australian Computer Society
> --------------------------------------------------------------------
> Web Access Talk, 6 Dec, Perth: http://www.tomw.net.au/2000/bat.html
>