Year: 2007
Type: article
Abstract: The growth and the expansion of the Internet and the World Wide Web continue to\nimpact society in new and amazing ways. The role of economic commerce has not\nbeen as dynamic as some predicted, but has still demonstrated remarkable success\nand tremendous potential. Any failure to meet some of the expectations may be\nexplained in large part by questions and concerns surrounding existing methods of\nelectronic commerce and of the Internet. A key negative perception centres on the\nsecurity involved in Internet practice and electronic payment systems. Negative\nperceptions are then compounded and reinforced by massive media exposure of\nInternet security incidents. Many consumers still lack the necessary trust in on-line\nmerchants and Internet security procedures and continue to use the Web to simply\nbrowse. The types of attack individuals face include confidence-trick or actual\nencounters calculated to extract bank or personal details, computer spyware that\nopens on accessing the Internet, enticing users with offers of non-existent free gifts\nwhile copying confidential files, and programmes that can infiltrate networks,\noperating within them undetected, ultimately causing them to crash. Social\nEngineering is one such method used by an attacker to get information. There are\ntwo main categories under which all social engineering attempts could be classified,\ncomputer or technology-based deception and human based deception. The\ntechnology-based approach is to deceive the user into believing that is interacting\nwith the ‘real’ computer system (such as popup window, informing the user that the\ncomputer application has had a problem) and get the user to provide confidential\ninformation. The human approach is done through deception, by taking advantage of\nthe victim’s ignorance, and the natural human inclination to be helpful and liked.\nOne of the most effective technology-based approach is a scam, called “phishing” as\na form of identity theft. This is a technique used to gain personal information for the\npurposes of identity theft, using fraudulent e-mail messages that appear to come\nfrom legitimate businesses. These authentic-looking messages are designed to fool\nrecipients into divulging personal data such as account numbers and passwords,\ncredit card numbers and Social Security numbers. This paper provides an overview\nof electronic commerce and the impact of risk and trust on on-line shopping\nconsumer behaviour. Due to the growth and potential of on-line shopping and the\nlack of academic-based research on Internet-related consumer behaviour, there is a\ntremendous need for impartial, academic investigation into the behaviour and\nperceptions of on-line consumers.
Author: Hamid Jahankhani
Institution: University of East London
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2164261500