Because they are impersonal, Internet transactions can get downright touchy. A sense of security needs to be established without creating the feeling of fort Knox. Customers must be able to select a mode of payment and the software must verify their ability to pay. This can involve credit cards, electronic cash or purchase orders. Specialized software such as cyber cash and Microsoft wallet can verify the purchaser and the purchase. e-commerce software usually work with the Secure sockets layer (SSL) developed by Netscape or the Secure Electronic Transaction( SET) technologies for encryption of data transmission. The more of these supported by an e-commerce package, the better. Most e-payment solution providers will require that the company establish a special bank account to handle the online transactions. More on opening your online store later on in this article.
With security being an issue with most online customers merchants and others are looking to exploit the huge potential on-line market with two choices: use conventional follow up systems like faxes and phone numbers to make the customers feel more secure or develop better systems of online security. While the first will probably continue, its second choice which is gaining more credibility- Digital cash. Encryption as already discussed is being used to protect information while it is being transmitted between a customer and a merchant on the Internet. Netscape uses the secure socket layer in their commerce server to provide server authentication, data encryption, and message integrity. SSL provides capabilities similar to the more familiar " Berkely sockets" or Winsock services. SSL sits between application protocols such as http, telnet ftp etc and the underlying protocol TCP/IP. But unlike ordinary socket connection, once your web browser has established a connection to a server using SSL, you know which merchant you are connected to , and you that your communication with that merchant is secure from eavesdropping or tampering.
The method used to establish identity is based upon an object called digital certificate. A digital certificate simply ties together a public key with say the name and address of the customer or merchant. The trick is that these certificates are signed by a trusted third party, in much the same way that the passport is signed by the government that issues it. Verisign, a spin off from RSA data security is in the business of issuing these certificates which they called Digital IDs. Currently these are digital IDs are not recognized by the Indian government.
The other methods besides Credit card processing are e-cash and e-credit , both of which require you to set up an account with an e-cash provider and buy only from merchants who have also registered with that provider. When you purchase something online it gets charged to your real credit card, with the provider taking extra measures to protect your security. Although electronic or digital cash is not yet wide spread, banks are issuing it allowing you to purchase items at registered retail sales. Electronic cards are coming up fast employing coded messages secret numbers and electronic buyer identification. Besides Verisign another guarantee of security can be found in Secure Electronic Transaction (SET). Set was developed by Visa and master card with participation from several technology companies including IBM and Microsoft. This system means that your entire credit card number is never traveling across the net- rather pieces of it are- and that no human eye sees the entire card number. | |
