Privacy and Security Issues Online - Essay Example

 Privacy and Security Issues Online 1. Introduction In today’s world, everything is becoming digitalized. For example, education and businesses are now conducted online. It is not a wonder to find people buying and selling goods and services via the internet. The need to use the internet for business or e-commerce has come from the demand within businesses and governments to make better use of computing technology, so as to improve customer interaction, and also the exchange of information between customers and sellers, or between sellers and sellers (Kalakota and Whinston, 1997). Conducting business via the internet has been referred to as e-commerce or electronic commerce (Kalakota and Whinston, 1997). According to Kalakota and Whinston, “it endeavors to improve the execution of business transactions over various networks” (1997, p. 4). Ecommerce has really made business easier and enjoyable. This has resulted to more performance, better quality, greater customer satisfaction, and better decision making among the consumers and sellers (Kalakota 1997). In recent years, especially in the twenty-first century, the increasing number of internet users and rapid growth of networks and technologies, such as laptops and internet enabled phones, has made e-commerce to be viewed as one of the killer applications of the computer and communication technologies; in other words, the best way to reach to a great number of customers and many people is online through social media sites such as face book among others (Funabashi and Grzech, 2005). In the UK, research shows that businesses conducted via the internet contribute to, or account for around 6% of the GDP (UK Cabinet Office Staff, 2011). The UK government believes that if e-commerce was a sector by itself, it would be larger than the sectors of utilities and agriculture (UK Cabinet Office Staff, 2011). However, apart from bringing many profits to business owners, it has brought about breaches of privacy and security to consumers and businesses. 1. Various Privacy and Security Issues experienced by Consumers and Businesses Online The ever increasing use of the internet has resulted in many consumers giving too much information without even realizing it and has been viewed as a tempting treasure, especially for marketers. For example, when a consumer visits a particular company’s website, he might unwillingly provide to the company with even confidential information. If the website utilizes cookies and other tracking devices, companies usually gather even more information, which if not properly handled, results in security and privacy issues. Computerized interactions between businesses and their clients have helped in building more sophisticated businesses. As more information is being shared with others, some clients’ personal information ends up in the wrong hands and might be used in wrong ways bringing up problems between consumers and businesses (Selis, Ramasastry, Kim and Smith, n.d.). The nature of online activities has been seen to threaten the privacy of consumer’s and the businesses taking place online. Every move the consumer or a business owner makes on the internet, whether on smartphones, tablets, or laptops, turn out to be information that trackers have been able to access, and used to their advantage. The following are some of the issues or threats that the consumers and businesses are facing when it comes to privacy and security online: 2.1 Proliferation of cookies Very often, marketers can be heard saying that they keep their consumer’s data base very private by only viewing it in urgent situations, but some fail to keep it private. It has been discovered that the amount of information that a cookie can collect about a particular person can enable the marketer to acquire a lot of information concerning that person. Proliferation of cookies is increasing at a very high rate. Additionally, the proliferation of cookies shows that a consumer and a business owner, has very slim chances of conducting a decent business transaction via the internet or online, without a third party interrupting; therefore, the internet is no longer secure (Riofrio, 2013). 2.2 loss of money by consumers and businesses Most of the time, businesses and consumers are not aware of the new vulnerabilities that dependence on online business transaction can bring. As the digital connections between businesses proliferate, the amounts of money lost in these transactions have increased. Recent research has suggested that the costs of internet related crimes to the United Kingdom could be in the order of £27 billion per year (UK Cabinet Office Staff, 2011). 2.3 Online data collection which has led to location data betrayal Location data enables one to be tracked on each and every move he makes across the world. For example, when one leaves his or her house to go to a friend’s house, or even goes to run an errand, and the geo-location is tracked and recorded, it gives a lot of information about the person. This information serves advertisers to their advantage since through it, they are able to send promotions on businesses, even when the customer is unwilling, or had not signed for it (Selis, Ramasastry, Kim and Smith, n.d.). 2.4 Control of personal information The issue of controlling consumer information has now dominated the nature of online business relationships. The interactivity between the consumer and e-business has become a communicative tag of war, as consumers strive to have more control on personal information, while businesses strive to gather more and more information on the consumers. According to Reynolds, Woods, and Baker, virtually all web users have declined to give personal information to websites at some point, and for those who have provided their information, half of it is usually falsified (2007). 2.4 Information and identity theft Identity theft is a really growing issue, especially when it comes to the interaction between business owners and their clients or consumers. This can be correlated to violation of privacy and security on the side of the consumers. Consumers are not well aware of what happens with the personal information they usually provide during business transactions at times. Researches have found out that in some instances, the consumers’ personal information has been used to conduct identity theft; this has been as a result of the free flow and proliferation of information (Selis, Ramasastry, Kim and Smith, n.d.). The consumers’ identities have been used by some of crooks in the name of business, where they make purchases and also establish credits, leaving the customers making payments on things they did not purchase, and also leaving them with ruined credit facilities, to the extent that some of them cannot get credits in future (Selis, Ramasastry, Kim and Smith, n.d.). For example, in May 2006, TJX’s officials’ reported a huge theft of corporate data by hackers, who have been committing cybercrimes aimed at generating profits (Prenhall.com, n.d.). They said that the hackers managed to gain access to the computer network where customers check information, debit and credit card data was stored (Prenhall.com, n.d.). The data was not only on UK customers, but customers from other nations as well, and the end result was the customers loosing a lot of money and making payments on items that they had not purchased (Prenhall.com, n.d.). 2. Ways through which Privacy and Security Issues Online are being addressed Due to the breaches experienced in privacy and security, there is now more focus on privacy issues and on what customers may be giving up, in order to reap this kind of personalization. As more people become aware of privacy issues, many companies are discovering the need to change the way they conduct business, in order to satisfy their customers’ concerns. Customers naturally view the companies that provide privacy protection to their websites as being more reliable and trustworthy, compared to those that do not protect them. Because of the increased insecurities on the internet, the businesses have looked for ways to protect their customers (Campbell, 2013). Some of the ways are as follows: 3.1 Companies have been asked to limit their collection of data Companies have been asked to collect only the information they need to accomplish a specific purposes. Despite the presence of a lot of support for this concept, some companies have expressed their greatest concerns and have argued that this would harm innovations and at the same time, deny consumers new products and services. For example, Netflix’s video is cited collecting data about the movie preferences of subscribers’, in order to send the requested videos, but later Netflix used the data to make individual subscriber recommendations (Campbell, 2013). 3.2 Changing online business models Businesses are now changing their business models in a way that companies are providing their visitors with clear website information on their website privacy policies, so as they can be able to mitigate the risks associated with online business. This is also meant to improve customer satisfaction, build trust, and avoid the costs of legal actions that may arise (Campbell, 2013). 3.3 Businesses providing features for privacy More companies are providing features that visitors can use so as to increase their personal security, while using a particular company’s website (Campbell, 2013). The presence of these features usually increases the trust that exists between businesses and their consumers. The businesses also make this feature more understandable for the average internet user to ensure that their plans of ensuring security do not backfire. Poorly described controls make people feel suspicious, as they feel like there is something which is not clear and that they should protect themselves against. Additionally, websites have included better designed opt- out pages that enables businesses or consumers to decline the collection of data if desired (Campbell, 2013). 3.4 Use of cookies with shorter timelines Websites have started using cookies with shorter timelines. The use of these shorter timeline cookies is an effort to create more anonymous data as account information. Business and consumer data is stored separately from logs, to provide improved security and privacy (Campbell, 2013). 3.5 Provision of law enforcement and funds to control cyber crime The government of the United Kingdom has created and enforced laws aimed at curbing and preventing cybercrimes. The National Cyber Crime Unit (NCCU), which is a department under the National Crime Agency, is tasked with the duty of fighting and handling crimes that take place in cyber space (GOV.UK, n.d.). The government has also encouraged courts in the United Kingdom to use the existing powers to impose the appropriate sanctions for online offences. This will help deter criminal activities in the online businesses. Additionally, the government has also set aside £650 million of public funding, for a four year national cyber security programme (UK Cabinet Office Staff, 2011). Conclusion The world has turned to a global village, as technology has made every transaction a lot easier. The use of smartphones, tablets, and laptops among other modern technologies has made businesses much easier. Companies are collecting more information about their consumers than ever before. They are meant to store this information securely and only share it with other parties only when necessary and appropriately. However, there are companies that have abused this information and used it for the wrong reasons. As collecting of consumers’ personal information has become very easy, there are a number of issues that have cropped up and has jeopardized the privacy and security of consumers and businesses online. There have been cases of identity theft that have led to many consumers loosing a lot of money. Also, some consumers and businesses have realized that their personal information is being used in ways they have not permitted, which is a breach of privacy. Additionally, there has been the issue of telemarketers’ fraud, which is a very serious issue to consumers and businesses. Due to the many issues facing the privacy and security of consumers and businesses online, there are a number of methods that have been developed to tackle them. Some of these methods include limiting the information collected about consumers’, businesses have also changed their online business models to those that will ensure security and privacy, and some laws have been enacted to provide security and privacy to online customers among others. Additionally, the United Kingdom government has provided funds that will boost security services in fighting cyber crime. Reference List Campbell, S., 2013. Customer Privacy is an important Part of Business Strategy. [online] Available at: [Accessed 6 November 2013]. Funabashi, M. and Grzech, A. ed., 2005. Challenges of Expanding Internet: E-Commerce, E-Business, and E-Government, New York: Springer Science + Business Media, Inc. GOV.UK, n.d. Keeping the UK Safe in Cyber Space. [online] Available at: < https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/keeping-the-uk-safe-in-cyberspace/supporting-pages/setting-up-a-national-cyber-crime-unit> [Accessed 6 November 2013]. Kalakota, R. and Whinston, Andrew B., 1997. Electronic Commerce: A Manager's Guide. Boston: Addison-Wesley Professional. Prenhall.com, n.d. Hackers Profit from TJX’s Corporate Data. [pdf] Available at: [Accessed 6 November 2013]. Reynolds, R. A., Woods, R. and Baker, J.D. ed., 2007. Handbook of Research on Electronic Surveys and Measurements. Hershey: Idea Group Inc. Riofrio, M., 2013. The 5 Biggest online Privacy Threats of 2013 [pdf]. Available at: [Accessed 6 November 2013]. Selis, P., Ramasastry, A., Kim, S. and Smith, C., n.d., Protecting Personal information through Commercial Best Practices [pdf]. Available at: [Accessed 6 November 2013]. UK Cabinet Office Staff, 2011. The UK Security Strategy: Protecting and Promoting UK in Digital World. [pdf] Available at: [Accessed 6 November 2013]. Read More