E-business may be defined as doing business electronically by completing business processes over open networks, thereby substituting information for the physical business processes (Weill and Vitale 2001, p. 5). A more working definition of e-business is: “Marketing, busying, selling, delivering, servicing and paying for products, services, and information across networks linking an enterprise and its prospects, customers, agents, suppliers, allies and complementors” (Weill and Vitale 2001, p. 5). E-commerce transactions are of two categories: B2B and B2C. B2B stands for business to business transactions and B2C is an acronym for Business to consumer transactions. Currently, C2C where transactions take place between consumers the consumer directly is a new category. There are a whole set of e-application categories such as E-tailing and Consumer Portals that enable web-driven fixed-price transactions, bidding and Auctioning portals that sell products through auction-type bidding or perform the role of third-party intermediaries who for a service price match buyers and sellers, consumer Care/Customer Management portals that provide a wide range of customer support processes and Electronic Bill Payment portals that assist customers to maintain accounts and pay bills electronically (Ross 2003, p. 95).
On the macroscopic level, there are several key drivers of e-business that can be categorized into technological, political, social and economic factors. The technological factor that drives e-business refers to the extent of advancement of the telecommunication infrastructure which provides access to the new technology for businesses and consumers. Politically, the government plays a huge role in promoting the growth of e-business through the creation of government legislation, initiatives and funding to support the use and development of e-commerce and information technology. Social factors such as incorporating the level and advancement in IT education and training will enable both potential buyers and the workforce to understand and use the new technology. Economic drivers of e-business include the general wealth and commercial health of the nation and the elements that contribute to it (Tassabehji 2003, p.8). The key drivers of e-business at the firm level include organizational culture, commercial benefits in terms of cost savings and improved efficiency, skilled and committed workforce, requirements of customers and suppliers and competition (Tassabehji 2003, p. 8).
E-commerce refers to the general exchange of goods and services via the internet. The U.S. Census Bureau states that “e-commerce is any business transaction whose price or essential terms were negotiated over an online system like the Internet, Extranet, Electronic data Interchange Network or electronic mail system” (Learn2succeed.com 2006, p. 4). The Internet is a vast global network of computer servers and computer networks that are connected to one another on a global basis. The World Wide Web is a component of the internet that uses a special HyperText Transfer Protocol and HTML language which supports links to documents, graphics, audio and video files and enables them to be transmitted over the internet. Extranets are private networks that use internet protocols and regular public telecommunications systems such as phone, cable or fiber-optic networks. Most often, extranets are the external part of an organization’s internal private network. Electronic Data Interchange networks are e-exchanges where the transfer of data takes place between different companies using networks such as the internet (Learn2succeed.com 2006, p. 4). A corporate portal is the dominant access URL for all information on a specific company, its products and its environment. It is different from all other e-business systems in that it looks less like an online shop and more like an information gateway, focusing on the company’s products and services (Whyte and Whyte, 2001).
There are many threats that make e-business systems vulnerable. Clever hackers can penetrate networks and steal information. Physical access threats can happen due to electrical vulnerabilities, environmental disasters and hardware threats (HP 2007, p. 1). Direct theft of hardware and data is also possible. Data security is needed to guard against unauthorized access to data in storage as well as data that is transmitted over communications networks, both private and public (HP 2007, p. 1). Data security can be assured through integrity controls, and authentication, additional access controls and/or encryption mechanisms (HP, 2007, p. 1). Sometimes, virus programs such as Trojan horse programs may be introduced into the system which can corrupt files and cause dangerous technical activities. Using applications such as antiviral software and firewalls can help in coping with such hazards. Finally, security from physical threats and threats due to malicious actions can be countered only through an integrated security policy that ensures authorized access to private data and protection of such data physically and electronically.
Bibliography
HP 2007, Network Security Threats. Web.
Learn2succeed.com 2006, E-Business for Beginners: How to Build a Web Site that Brings in the Dough, Productive Publications, 2006.
Ross, FD 2003, Introduction to E-supply Chain Management: Engaging Technology to Build Market-winning Business Partnerships, CRC Press, 2003.
Tassabehji, R 2003, Applying E-commerce in Business. SAGE Publications, 2003.
Weill, P and Vitale, RM 2001, Place to Space: Migrating to Ebusiness Models, Harvard Business Press, 2001.
Whyte, B and Whyte, WS 2001, Enabling Ebusiness: Integrating Technologies, Architectures, and Applications, John Wiley and Sons, 2001.