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Security implications of Electronic Commerce: A Survey of Consumers and Businesses
Furnell SM, Karweni T
Internet Research, vol. 9, no. 5, pp372-382, 1999
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Electronic commerce is poised to become one of the major applications areas in the Internet / World Wide Web environment, with significant growth forecast to occur within the next two to three years. However, one of the significant requirements for the success of e-commerce is trust, on the part of both the consumers and businesses offering services. It can be observed that while e-commerce services are now being offered on the Internet, a number of examples can be cited that suggest sufficient protection has not been fully achieved.




The paper examines the general requirement for security technologies in order to provide a basis for trust in the e-commerce environment. The discussion is supported by the findings from two surveys, conducted by the authors, among general Internet users (i.e. potential target consumers) and commercial businesses. These surveys considered both the attitudes to e-commerce in general and opinions relating to the associated security requirements. Attempts were also made to assess the respondent?s knowledge of the existing security safeguards that may be applied.




The survey results suggest that, while there is significant concern amongst Internet-based consumers regarding the security of their purchasing activities, these are outweighed by the merits offered by the medium. The results also suggested a lack of awareness or understanding of the security technologies that are available and it is concluded that overcoming this problem would help to establish a wider foundation of trust in the new technology.

Furnell SM, Karweni T