Commerce rules the world, but increasingly technology rules how monetary transactions occur. Both technology and currency are essential tools for consumers and businesses. Doing business used to be simpler; when a person needed to cash/deposit a check he or she drove to the bank and filled out a small sheet of paper to process the transaction. Now, there are a variety of methods available for monetary transactions. Technology has made financial matters more convenient for the general population, for example with the smartphone or online transactions. Advancements in technology have meant people can conduct business from anywhere any time of day or night. This reality changes the dynamics of our culture. People have the ability to communicate in a way with one another without ever having to be in the same room or even the same country. One of the greatest changes technology made to the world has directly impacted money, commerce and how consumers and businesses make transactions. However the first order of business is making sure that these types of transactions can be done safely and have no great risk involved. As new technology developments arise, fraudulent and scamming activities is following suit. So it is important to understand some of the infrastructures that are in place to gain confidence and give reassurance to the customer and businesses that conduct transactions on a daily basis. This is exactly what will be addressed, reviewing some of the methods that make the use of technology through commerce feasible.
Not only have technology and commerce merged in contemporary times, they complement each other. This is called Electronic Commerce. The reason they complement one another so well is because of the need to facilitate speed of transactions. The world today moves quickly and getting things done faster is essential. Consumers want products/services faster, businesses want information faster, law enforcement wants justice faster, and even hospitals want things done quickly as well. As problems and issues become more prevalent in our global economy, it is essential to remedy these misfortunes of our world at a fast pace. Keeping up with these demands can prevent the paralysis of a country or a population. Money/commerce is the underlying force behind most transactions, and technology is the means by which money can most quickly serve its cause. However, these two necessities are not in place solely to solve world problems. Money and technology are also in place to control and to keep close watch on the economy, and can be used competitively by businesses. Examples of this are the stock market, online stores, and marketing of goods and services. Technology is taking the old ways of making transactions to new paths that will soon prove to be more efficient and less time consuming.
Money serves as a medium for exchange of goods and services and has been around for thousands of years. It is an identifiable object that is recognized by parties that helps and aides a transaction between people or an entity (like a business or institution). The interesting aspect to money is that by itself it does not hold any real value. A person could take a piece of wood and engrave some marking on it and consider it money just as long as everybody else in society recognized the wood as a form of currency (a form of currency is worth something only as long as it is given value by a society).
Before there was money people exchanged what they had for other possessions, like a cow for a horse. Technology, on the other hand, is a little more difficult to interpret with regard to its role in commerce. Technology has had varying definitions over the years, and does not necessarily mean a piece of equipment or machinery. According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary one definition of technology is, “the use of science in industry, engineering, etc., to invent useful things or to solve problems,” (2015) In this sense, over a long period of time, technology transformed the process of inventing and building machinery to influence commerce and support the use of currency as we know it. It is very clear that this the era where everything is going digital and its impact has sparked a revolution. What is meant by revolution? There seems to have been a major shift in power that is made available to the consumer, where anything can be achieved through the use of the internet. The consumer has the ability to start a business at a very cost-reductive rate and makes room for a profitable margin (depending on what service or product).
Problem Statement
Transactions are becoming more efficient through electronics (electronic commerce), but security and privacy issues remain a huge concern for consumers and businesses. Ongoing research needs to be done to exhibit the progress of financial security in a commerce driven society. To show new convenient methods are safe and becoming progressively more efficient. The e-commerce field is an extremely diversified market that enables an individual to sell services online (digital bartering). Security is a major concern when conducting transactions within the spectrum of Electronic commerce. Necessary precaution must be taken into account for internet based societies today.
What you should know
- EC is driven by many technological, economic, and social factors. So be aware that its an area that is considered to be very broad. so it is important, first and foremost, to have a strong infrastructure that can support and recognize these services.
- The beauty of the online experience is that you don’t need anything physical to make an acquisition, everything is done through enormous amounts of data that is transferred at high speeds.There have been many breaches on all types of organizations and even government agencies and it is because of these high security breaches that makes it the utmost importance to protect the people (buyers or sellers) from these potential threats. Attackers have a lot flexibility in regards to various methods available for use towards targeting victims or entities. A lot of these cyber-attacks can be done through emails, pop up screens that display fake warnings, piracy or or just simply by not having an anti-virus software can leave you vulnerable to attacks.
- The use of a credit card has become the norm in daily practice for the majority. The credit card itself is a technological advancement within its own right. Money serves as a medium (a substitute) for exchanges of goods and services, and now credit cards serve as a medium for money. Frauds or cyber criminals will always choose the path to the least resistance, if people are less likely to carry cash with them, which is happening more and more now with the use of credit/debit cards then greater probability of digital robbery or pick pocketing.
- Credit cards are not completely fraud proof, some damage can still be done, especially when all the information the perpetrator needs is on your credit card. The U.S. is the last major market to still use the old fashioned swipe-and-sign system, and it’s a reason why almost half of the world’s credit card fraud happens in America. However in recognition of this changes have been made since, and now all businesses are required to have updated EMV reader (transaction system) and chipped credit cards.
- Any business or institution that fails to make any of these upgrades to the new system will be held liable for any fraudulent activities, a major burden lifted off the shoulders of the consumers, who had to bare the consequences of criminal activity .
-Smartphones in this day and age are so attached to us that they are almost as essential as wearing clothes, so why not use them to make payments. Several new products and services have been released that could make mobile payments more convenient and worth trying. Like the Cash app, Pay-Pal here, Apple pay, Google Wallet, Current C and many more.
- A computer is secure if you can depend on it and its software to behave as you expect. Information is valuable and can come at a price (to whom it benefits) which is one of the prime motivating factors to why there are scammers, frauds or hackers. Protect yourself when you browse the internet by making certain the web pages you visit, especially where you make purchases has a Secure Socket Layer (SSL). The SSL is what protects you from harmful websites, it's usually the green highlighted area in your URL browser i the left corner with a little green lock. The SSL is like the middlemen that establishes a connection between two parties . This is necessary because it’s a process that validates data being sent or received. The internet by its self is a dangerous place to explore without protection, So the SSL fulfills its purpose purpose protocol for sending encrypted information over the internet. This is vital for conducting business, all the big boys make certain that they are SSL approved.
In conclusion based on the research conducted in my findings there is evidence of a more secure future in the electronic commerce world. The practices of stealing sensitive information from businesses and consumers has had too great of an impact on the world and has resulted in more effective methods. Vulnerabilities and liabilities have propelled innovative solutions to answer security and privacy issues for both businesses and consumers. The defense is improving in response to current and new attack methods. The implication of this research is to inform the progress of financial security and the comprehensive strategies that are being implemented to allow electronic commerce be proficient.
Advances that have been made in electronic commerce security have made the process of conducting personal and business transaction less vulnerable. Some of those advances include: ATM frauds, use of credit/debit cards, contactless payments, Secure Socket Layer, encryption software and mobile payments. However it is important to note that these advances are not permanent solutions to vulnerabilities but are current ones that have proven to be effective. Moving forward as innovative solutions attempt to place a stronghold on attack methods it would seem that electronic commerce is becoming the alternative to conducting transactions and with the help of technology advancements, a safer one.
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