A new alliance between American Internet security firm Verisign (VRSN) and Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba.com will give suppliers who subscribe to Alibaba.com's TrustPass membership service a way to verify their status as a legitimate business entity.

When merchants and suppliers enroll in the Alibaba TrustPass marketplace membership program, VeriSign will independently authenticate the business in a multi-step verification process. Only those suppliers who pass the VeriSign evaluation will be allowed to display the VeriSign Verified Seal on their TrustPass profiles, microsites, and Alibaba.com product detail pages.

Alibaba.com will make the enhanced verification available to its international TrustPass members whose products are carried on the company's English-language marketplace for global importers and exporters.

The financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed by either company.