A technique for conducting a transaction via a network is described. In this technique, in response to receiving transaction information associated with the transaction via the network from a network browser in a computer, a computer system provides an encrypted version of the received transaction information via the network to an application that executes in the computer, which facilitates a comparison of the received transaction information with original transaction information provided by a user to the computer. Note that this application is separate from the network browser, and the communication with the application via the network is independent of the network browser. Moreover, if the received transaction information matches the original transaction information, the computer system receives approval for the transaction from the computer via the network.