The InterTrust system provides a comprehensive solution to the security needs of global electronic commerce.  This talk assesses the relationship between commerce and trust, then describes how the InterTrust system fits into that picture.  The InterTrust system uses cryptography and protected processing to bind information securely with the rules that govern its manipulation, and by doing so ensures that wherever the information is processed, the rules are followed.  The InterTrust architecture is initially implemented in software, but will soon be incorporated into highly tamper-resistant hardware devices for a much higher level of security protection.  The architecture provides for a true end-to-end solution for information management: a creator establishes the initial rules and binds them to the information; one or more subsequent distributors modify those rules subject to conditions established by more senior parties, thus establishing a value chain; a consumer operates on the information; and the clearinghouse infrastructure returns information about the results of operations to members of the value chain as specified by the rules.  The initial applications of the InterTrust architecture include content vending and electronic software distribution, but those are only a few of the possible applications the overall architecture, in contrast to the wide variety of approaches currently in the marketplace intended to solve specific problems, such as paying for Web content.