Information Security in E-Commerce

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Asked by: Dr. Vella Reynolds IV

Explanation : During E‐commerce transaction we should ensure Integrity, Security and Confidentiality.

E-Commerce Overview

• Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)
• Electronic Mail (e-mail)
• Electronic Bulletin Boards
• Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT)
• Other Network-based technologies

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• Confidentiality − Information should not be accessible to an unauthorized person. It should not be intercepted during the transmission.

• Integrity − Information should not be altered during its transmission over the network.

• Availability − Information should be available wherever and whenever required within a time limit specified.

• Non-Repudiability − It is the protection against the denial of order or denial of payment. Once a sender sends a message, the sender should not be able to deny sending the message. Similarly, the recipient of message should not be able to deny the receipt.

• Auditability − Data should be recorded in such a way that it can be audited for integrity requirements.

E-Money

E-Money transactions refer to situation where payment is done over the network and the
amount gets transferred from one financial body to another financial body without any involvement of a middleman. E-money transactions are faster, convenient, and saves a lot of time.

Online payments done via credit cards, debit cards, or smart cards are examples of emoney
transactions. Another popular example is e-cash. In case of e-cash, both customer and merchant have to sign up with the bank or company issuing e-cash.

Measures to ensure Security

• Encryption − It is a very effective and practical way to safeguard the data being transmitted over the network. Sender of the information encrypts the data using a secret code and only the specified receiver can decrypt the data using the same or a different secret code.

• Digital Signature − Digital signature ensures the authenticity of the information. A digital signature is an e-signature authenticated through encryption and password.

E-Commerce — Business Models

• Business — to — Business (B2B)
• Business — to — Consumer (B2C)
• Consumer — to — Consumer (C2C)
• Consumer — to — Business (C2B)
• Business — to — Government (B2G)
• Government — to — Business (G2B)
• Government — to — Citizen (G2C)

E-Commerce — B2B Model

• Electronics
• Shipping and Warehousing
• Motor Vehicles
• Petrochemicals
• Paper
• Office products
• Food
• Agriculture

Security Protocols in Internet

We will discuss here some of the popular protocols used over the internet to ensure secured online transactions.

Secure Socket Layer (SSL)

• Authentication
• Encryption
• Integrity
• Non-reputability

«https://» is to be used for HTTP urls with SSL, where as «http:/» is to be used for HTTP urls without SSL.

Secure Hypertext Transfer Protocol (SHTTP)

Secure Electronic Transaction

• Card Holder’s Digital Wallet Software − Digital Wallet allows the card holder
  to make secure purchases online via point and click interface.

• Merchant Software − This software helps merchants to communicate with
  potential customers and financial institutions in a secure manner.

• Payment Gateway Server Software − Payment gateway provides automatic and standard payment process. It supports the process for merchant’s certificate request.

• Certificate Authority Software − This software is used by financial institutions to issue digital certificates to card holders and merchants, and to enable them to
  register their account agreements for secure electronic commerce.

Advantages to Customers

• It provides 24×7 support. Customers can enquire about a product or service and place orders anytime, anywhere from any location.

• A customer can put review comments about a product and can see what others are buying, or see the review comments of other customers before making a final purchase.

• E-commerce provides options of virtual auctions.

• It provides readily available information. A customer can see the relevant detailed
  information within seconds, rather than waiting for days or weeks.

• E-Commerce increases the competition among organizations and as a result, organizations provides substantial discounts to customers.

E-Commerce — Advantages

E-Commerce advantages can be broadly classified in three major categories −

• Advantages to Organizations
• Advantages to Consumers
• Advantages to Society

Technical Disadvantages

• There can be lack of system security, reliability or standards owing to poor implementation of e-commerce.

• The software development industry is still evolving and keeps changing rapidly.

• In many countries, network bandwidth might cause an issue.

• Special types of web servers or other software might be required by the vendor, setting the e-commerce environment apart from network servers.

• Sometimes, it becomes difficult to integrate an e-commerce software or website with existing applications or databases.

• There could be software/hardware compatibility issues, as some e-commerce software may be incompatible with some operating system or any other component.

E-Commerce — Security Systems

• Confidentiality − Information should not be accessible to an unauthorized person. It should not be intercepted during the transmission.

• Integrity − Information should not be altered during its transmission over the network.

• Availability − Information should be available wherever and whenever required within a time limit specified.

• Non-Repudiability − It is the protection against the denial of order or denial of payment. Once a sender sends a message, the sender should not be able to deny sending the message. Similarly, the recipient of message should not be able to deny the receipt.

• Auditability − Data should be recorded in such a way that it can be audited for integrity requirements.

Features

• Non-Cash Payment − E-Commerce enables the use of credit cards, debit cards,
  smart cards, electronic fund transfer via bank’s website, and other modes of electronics payment.

• 24×7 Service availability − E-commerce automates the business of enterprises
  and the way they provide services to their customers. It is available anytime, anywhere.

• Advertising / Marketing − E-commerce increases the reach of advertising of
  products and services of businesses. It helps in better marketing management of products/services.

• Improved Sales − Using e-commerce, orders for the products can be generated
  anytime, anywhere without any human intervention. It gives a big boost to existing sales volumes.

• Support − E-commerce provides various ways to provide pre-sales and post-sales assistance to provide better services to customers.

• Inventory Management − E-commerce automates inventory management. Reports get generated instantly when required. Product inventory management becomes very efficient and easy to maintain.

• Communication improvement − E-commerce provides ways for faster, efficient,
  reliable communication with customers and partners.

Measures to ensure Security

• Encryption − It is a very effective and practical way to safeguard the data being transmitted over the network. Sender of the information encrypts the data using a secret code and only the specified receiver can decrypt the data using the same or a different secret code.

• Digital Signature − Digital signature ensures the authenticity of the information. A digital signature is an e-signature authenticated through encryption and password.

Advantages of an EDI System

• Reduction in data entry errors. − Chances of errors are much less while using a computer for data entry.

• Shorter processing life cycle − Orders can be processed as soon as they are
  entered into the system. It reduces the processing time of the transfer documents.

• Reduction in paperwork − As a lot of paper documents are replaced with
  electronic documents, there is a huge reduction in paperwork.

• Cost Effective − As time is saved and orders are processed very effectively, EDI proves to be highly cost effective.

• Standard Means of communication − EDI enforces standards on the content of
  data and its format which leads to clearer communication.

Secure Socket Layer (SSL)

• Authentication
• Encryption
• Integrity
• Non-reputability

«https://» is to be used for HTTP urls with SSL, where as «http:/» is to be used for HTTP urls without SSL.

Secure Hypertext Transfer Protocol (SHTTP)

Secure Electronic Transaction

• Card Holder’s Digital Wallet Software − Digital Wallet allows the card holder
  to make secure purchases online via point and click interface.

• Merchant Software − This software helps merchants to communicate with
  potential customers and financial institutions in a secure manner.

• Payment Gateway Server Software − Payment gateway provides automatic and standard payment process. It supports the process for merchant’s certificate request.

• Certificate Authority Software − This software is used by financial institutions to issue digital certificates to card holders and merchants, and to enable them to
  register their account agreements for secure electronic commerce.

Security Protocols in Internet

We will discuss here some of the popular protocols used over the internet to ensure secured online transactions.

E-Commerce — B2C Model

In B2C model, a business website is a place where all the transactions take place directly
between a business organization and a consumer.

• Heavy advertising required to attract customers.
• High investments in terms of hardware/software.
• Support or good customer care service.

Debit Card

Debit card, like credit card, is a small plastic card with a unique number mapped with
the bank account number. It is required to have a bank account before getting a debit card from the bank. The major difference between a debit card and a credit card is that in case of payment through debit card, the amount gets deducted from the card’s bank account immediately and there should be sufficient balance in the bank account for the transaction to get completed; whereas in case of a credit card transaction, there is no such compulsion.

Debit cards free the customer to carry cash and cheques. Even merchants accept a debit card readily. Having a restriction on the amount that can be withdrawn in a day using a debit card helps the customer to keep a check on his/her spending.

Credit Card

• The card holder − Customer
• The merchant − seller of product who can accept credit card payments.
• The card issuer bank − card holder’s bank
• The acquirer bank − the merchant’s bank
• The card brand − for example , visa or Mastercard.

Disintermediation and Re-intermediation

In traditional commerce, there are intermediating agents like wholesalers, distributors, and
retailers between the manufacturer and the consumer. In B2C websites, a manufacturer can
sell its products directly to potential consumers. This process of removal of business layers
responsible for intermediary functions is called disintermediation.

Nowadays, new electronic intermediary breeds such as e-mall and product selection agents
are emerging. This process of shifting of business layers responsible for intermediary functions from traditional to electronic mediums is called re-intermediation.

EDI Documents

• Invoices
• Purchase orders
• Shipping Requests
• Acknowledgement
• Business Correspondence letters
• Financial information letters

E-Commerce — Payment Systems

• Credit Card
• Debit Card
• Smart Card
• E-Money
• Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT)

Government — to — Business

Governments use B2G model websites to approach business organizations. Such websites support auctions, tenders, and application submission functionalities.

E-Commerce — EDI

EDI stands for Electronic Data Interchange. EDI is an electronic way of transferring business documents in an organization internally, between its various departments or externally with suppliers, customers, or any subsidiaries. In EDI, paper documents are replaced with electronic documents such as word documents, spreadsheets, etc.

Business — to — Government

B2G model is a variant of B2B model. Such websites are used by governments to trade and exchange information with various business organizations. Such websites are accredited by the government and provide a medium to businesses to submit application forms to the government.

Information Security in E-Commerce

Earlier when the Internet was just started, its main use was limited to only sending or receiving e-mails. Thus, the only security concerns were the malicious programs such as viruses, worms, Trojan horses, etc., that could enter your system by attaching themselves to e-mail messages. However, with the growth of the internet, the ways of using the Internet have changed a lot. Today, the Internet is commonly used for conducting e-commerce- the buying and selling of goods online- that has brought long-held security concerns.

(3) Confidentiality- Implies that the information is accessible to only those persons who have been authorized to access it.

(4) Authentication- Implies that the sender and receiver of information must prove their identities to each another.

(6) Nonrepudiation- Prevention against any one party from reneging on an agreement after the fact.

Let’s now discuss some of the technologies that are used to ensure the security of transactions in e-commerce:

Encryption and Decryption:

Encryption and decryption are processes that ensure confidentiality so that only authorized persons can access the information. Encryption is the process of translating plain text data (plaintext) into random and mangled data (called ciphertext). Decryption is the reverse process of converting the ciphertext back to plaintext. Encryption and decryption are done by cryptography. In cryptography, a key is a piece of information (parameter) that determines the functional output of a cryptographic algorithm. Encryption is used to protect data in a communication system, for example, data being transferred via networks (e.g. the Internet, e-commerce), mobile telephones, wireless microphones, wireless intercom systems, Bluetooth devices, and bank automatic teller machines.

Digital Signature:

A signature on a legal, financial, or any other document authenticates the document. A photocopy of that document does not count. For computerized documents, the conditions that a signed document must hold are-

• The receiver is able to verify the sender (as claimed).
• The sender cannot later repudiate the contents of the message.
• The receiver cannot concoct the message himself.

A digital signature scheme is a type of asymmetric cryptography. Digital signatures use public-key cryptography, which employs two keys- private key and public key. The digital signature scheme typically consists of three algorithms-

• Key Generation Algorithm- The algorithm outputs a private key and a corresponding public key.
• Signing Algorithm- It takes a message + private key, as input, and, outputs a digital signature.
• Signature Verifying Algorithm- It takes message + public key + digital signature, as input, and, accepts or rejects digital signature.

It also ensures nonrepudiation. It means that no party or person can later deny that he never created such a document, which is digitally signed by him. In case, he claims that he did not create that document, it can be easily proved that he must have created the document (unless their private key was not stolen).

Secure Socket Layer (SSL):

PCI, SET, and Kerberos:

You can transmit sensitive information, such as that relating to your credit card, by using the SSL, protocol over a network. However, a hacker can still hack the server and access the information after the information is stored on a server. To guard against such a contingency, you should use the hardware called the Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI).

Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) is a protocol developed by Visa and MasterCard. It ensures secure transactions over the Internet. SET uses encryption for privacy and digital certificates to verify the three parties i.e. the bank, the customer, and the merchant. Most importantly, the merchant cannot see the sensitive information as data is not stored on the merchant’s server.

Kerberos- It is an authentication method that is based on symmetric key cryptography, also known as private key cryptography. In symmetric key cryptography, different keys are used for encrypting and decrypting a message. Kerberos is a third-party authentication that validates the clients over the network and provides secure communication or access to network resources.

Firewall:

A firewall in computer terms protects your network from untrusted networks. The reason is simple: it’s a matter of survival! companies rely more and more on the internet to advertise their products and services. It has become necessary to protect data, transmissions, and transactions from any incidents, regardless if the cause is unintentional or by malicious acts. This firewall mechanism is used to protect your corporate network/Internet and/or Web Servers against unauthorized access coming from the Internet or even from inside a protected network. Basically, a firewall separates a protected network from an unprotected one, the Internet. It is an extra layer of security placed between an internal network or Intranet and the Internet. It protects one network, the secure corporate network, from another network, the supposedly insecure network. The secure network is referred to as the trusted network. The objective of the firewall is to control access to the trusted network. It allows only authorized data to enter the network. For example, a firewall helps in preventing unauthorized port entrance, denying all outsiders access to port 80, resulting in no one outside the organization accessing the HTTP server. All the other ports should also be secured from outsiders’ intrusion.

• Protection from vulnerable service.
• Control access to the site system.
• Concentrated security.
• Enhance privacy.
• Logging and statistics on Network use and misuse.

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How can we protect e-commerce?

Let’s look at five steps to take to secure your e-commerce website.

1. Step 1: Promote Good Password Hygene. …
2. Step 2: Use HTTPS. …
3. Step 3: Choose a Secure E-Commerce Platform. …
4. Step 4: Don’t Store Sensitive User Data. …
5. Step 5: Employ Your Own Website Monitor. …
6. Step 6: Maintain a Security-Focused Mindset.

How the transactions occurs in e-commerce?

Explanation : The transactions occur in e‐commerce using e‐medias.

What is transaction security in e-commerce?

Transaction Security is concerned with providing privacy in transactions to the buyers and sellers and protecting the client-server network from breakdowns and third party attacks. It basically deals with – Client security – Techniques and practices that protect user privacy and integrity of the computing system.

Business — to — Business

Steps in an EDI System

• A program generates a file that contains the processed document.

• The document is converted into an agreed standard format.

• The file containing the document is sent electronically on the network.

• The trading partner receives the file.

• An acknowledgement document is generated and sent to the originating organization.

Government — to — Citizen

Governments use G2C model websites to approach citizen in general. Such websites support auctions of vehicles, machinery, or any other material. Such website also provides services like registration for birth, marriage or death certificates. The main objective of G2C websites is to reduce the average time for fulfilling citizen’s requests for various government services.

What are the benefits of e-commerce?

Understanding the advantages of ecommerce

• Faster buying process.
• Store and product listing creation.
• Cost reduction.
• Affordable advertising and marketing.
• Flexibility for customers.
• No reach limitations.
• Product and price comparison.
• Faster response to buyer/market demands.

32 related questions found

What are the threats of e-commerce?

Top 10 E-commerce Security Threats

• Financial frauds. Ever since the first online businesses entered the world of the internet, financial fraudsters have been giving businesses a headache. …
• Phishing. …
• Spamming. …
• DoS & DDoS Attacks. …
• Malware. …
• Exploitation of Known Vulnerabilities. …
• Bots. …
• Brute force.

What is E transaction?

An electronic transaction is the sale or purchase of goods or services, whether between businesses, households, individuals, governments, and other public or private organisations, conducted over computer-mediated networks.

What are the features of e-commerce?

The characteristics of eCommerce technology

• Global reach. …
• Location. …
• Interactivity. …
• Universal standards. …
• Personalization and adaptation. …
• Social technology. …
• Information density. …
• Wealth.

What are the types of online transaction?

Different types of online financial transactions are:

• National Electronic Fund Transfer (NEFT) …
• Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) …
• Electronic Clearing System (ECS) …
• Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) …
• Objectives of IMPS:

Which is the first step in e-commerce website design?

The first step in ecommerce development is figuring out what you’re going to sell. What excites you? Building an online store around your passions translates into a business you’ll enjoy running.

What is e-commerce scope?

Which is not feature of e-commerce?

Solution(By Examveda Team)

BPR is not a feature of eCommerce. Business process re-engineering is a business management strategy, originally pioneered in the early 1990s, focusing on the analysis and design of workflows and business processes within an organization.

What is online transaction give two examples?

Online transactions are familiar to most people. Examples include: ATM machine transactions such as deposits, withdrawals, inquiries, and transfers. Supermarket payments with debit or credit cards.

What are the steps involved in online transaction?

Three steps involved in the online transaction are Registration, Placing an order, and, Payment.

What are the modes of online payment?

Types of Payment Methods for ECommerce

• Credit/Debit card payments: Payments via cards are one of the most widely used and popular methods not only in India but on the international level. …
• Prepaid card payments: …
• Bank transfers: …
• E-Wallets: …
• Cash: …
• Mobile payments: …
• Cryptocurrencies: …
• Ecommerce payment gateway:

What are the 8 unique features of e-commerce?

Terms in this set (8)

• Ubiquity. internet/web tech is available everywhere. …
• Global reach. tech reaches across national boundaries which makes marketspace potentially billions.
• Universal Standards. …
• Richness. …
• Interactivity. …
• Information density. …
• Personalization/Customization. …
• Social Technology.

What are some examples of e-commerce?

Examples of E-Commerce

• Amazon.
• Flipkart.
• eBay.
• Fiverr.
• Upwork.
• Olx.
• Quikr.

What are the four types of e-commerce?

Types of E-Commerce

• Business-to-Business (B2B)
• Business-to-Consumer (B2C)
• Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C)
• Consumer-to-Business (C2B)
• Business-to-Administration (B2A)
• Consumer-to-Administration (C2A)

What are the advantages of e payment system?

7 Amazing benefits of using electronic payments

• Instant Payment. Electronic payments are much faster than the traditional methods of payments such as cash or cheques. …
• Higher payment security. …
• Better customer convenience. …
• Saves processing costs. …
• Low risk of theft. …
• Transparent. …
• Contactless.

What is set protocol in e commerce?

What is a non electronic transaction?

In-branch checks, deposits, withdrawals, and transfers are all considered non-electronic transactions. However, depositing up to 12 checks at the same time counts as one transaction. The account comes with a debit card, free starter checks, and digital banking access.

What are the 3 types of e-commerce?

There are three main types of e-commerce: business-to-business (websites such as Shopify), business-to-consumer (websites such as Amazon), and consumer-to-consumer (websites such as eBay).

What are the top 3 security issues in e-commerce?

Common Ecommerce Security Threats & Issues. There are quite a few threats you need to protect your online store from. Common examples of security threats include hacking, misuse of personal data, monetary theft, phishing attacks, unprotected provision of services, and credit card frauds.

What are the threats of e payment?

Electronic payments system:

• The Risk of Fraud. An electronic payment system has a huge risk of fraud. …
• The Risk of Tax Evasion. …
• The Risk of Payment Conflicts. …
• E-cash. …
• Backdoors Attacks. …
• Denial of service attacks. …
• Direct Access Attacks. …
• Eavesdropping.

What are the 3 methods of payment?

The three most basic methods of payment are cash, credit, and payment-in-kind (or bartering). These three methods are used in basic transactions; for example, one may pay for a candy bar with cash, a credit card or, theoretically, even by trading another candy bar.

Traditional Commerce v/s E-Commerce

Sr. No.	Traditional Commerce	E-Commerce
1	Heavy dependency on information exchange from person to person.	Information sharing is made easy via electronic communication channels making little dependency on person to person information exchange.
2	Communication/ transaction are done in synchronous way. Manual intervention is required for each communication or transaction.	Communication or transaction can be done in asynchronous way. Electronics system automatically handles when to pass communication to required person or do the transactions.
3	It is difficult to establish and maintain standard practices in traditional commerce.	A uniform strategy can be easily established and maintain in e-commerce.
4	Communications of business depends upon individual skills.	In e-Commerce or Electronic Market, there is no human intervention.
5	Unavailability of a uniform platform as traditional commerce depends heavily on personal communication.	E-Commerce website provides user a platform where al l information is available at one place.
6	No uniform platform for information sharing as it depends heavily on personal communication.	E-Commerce provides a universal platform to support commercial / business activities across the globe.

Non-Technical Disadvantages

• Initial cost − The cost of creating/building an e-commerce application in-house may be very high. There could be delays in launching an e-Commerce application due to mistakes, and lack of experience.

• Security/ Privacy − It is difficult to ensure the security or privacy on online transactions.

• Lack of touch or feel of products during online shopping is a drawback.

• E-commerce applications are still evolving and changing rapidly.

• Internet access is still not cheaper and is inconvenient to use for many potential
  customers, for example, those living in remote villages.

E-Commerce — Disadvantages

The disadvantages of e-commerce can be broadly classified into two major categories −

• Technical disadvantages
• Non-Technical disadvantages

Smart Card

Smart card is again similar to a credit card or a debit card in appearance, but it has a
small microprocessor chip embedded in it. It has the capacity to store a customer’s work-related and/or personal information. Smart cards are also used to store money and the amount gets deducted after every transaction.

Smart cards can only be accessed using a PIN that every customer is assigned with. Smart cards are secure, as they store information in encrypted format and are less expensive/provides faster processing. Mondex and Visa Cash cards are examples of smart cards.

Architectural Models

• Buyer Oriented marketplace − In this type of model, buyer has his/her own market place or e-market. He invites suppliers to bid on product’s catalog. A Buyer company opens a bidding site.

• Intermediary Oriented marketplace − In this type of model, an intermediary company runs a market place where business buyers and sellers can transact with each other.

Key Technologies

• Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) − EDI is an inter-organizational exchange
  of business documents in a structured and machine processable format.

• Internet − Internet represents the World Wide Web or the network of networks
  connecting computers across the world.

• Intranet − Intranet represents a dedicated network of computers within a single organization.

• Extranet − Extranet represents a network where the outside business partners,
  suppliers, or customers can have a limited access to a portion of enterprise intranet/network.

• Back-End Information System Integration − Back-end information systems
  are database management systems used to manage the business data.

Advantages to Organizations

• Using e-commerce, organizations can expand their market to national and international markets with minimum capital investment. An organization can easily locate more customers, best suppliers, and suitable business partners across the globe.

• E-commerce helps organizations to reduce the cost to create process, distribute, retrieve and manage the paper based information by digitizing the information.

• E-commerce improves the brand image of the company.

• E-commerce helps organization to provide better customer services.

• E-commerce helps to simplify the business processes and makes them faster and efficient.

• E-commerce reduces the paper work.

• E-commerce increases the productivity of organizations. It supports «pull» type
  supply management. In «pull» type supply management, a business process starts when a request comes from a customer and it uses just-in-time manufacturing way.

Advantages to Society

• Customers need not travel to shop a product, thus less traffic on road and low air
  pollution.

• E-commerce helps in reducing the cost of products, so less affluent people can also afford the products.

• E-commerce has enabled rural areas to access services and products, which are otherwise not available to them.

• E-commerce helps the government to deliver public services such as healthcare, education, social services at a reduced cost and in an improved manner.

Credit Card Payment Proces

Step	Description
Step 1	Bank issues and activates a credit card to the customer on his/her request.
Step 2	The customer presents the credit card information to the merchant site or to the merchant from whom he/she wants to purchase a product/service.
Step 3	Merchant validates the customer’s identity by asking for approval from the card brand company.
Step 4	Card brand company authenticates the credit card and pays the transaction by credit. Merchant keeps the sales slip.
Step 5	Merchant submits the sales slip to acquirer banks and gets the service charges paid to him/her.
Step 6	Acquirer bank requests the card brand company to clear the credit amount and gets the payment.
Step 6	Now the card brand company asks to clear the amount from the issuer bank and the amount gets transferred to the card brand company.

Electronic Fund Transfer

It is a very popular electronic payment method to transfer money from one bank account to another bank account. Accounts can be in the same bank or different banks. Fund transfer can be done using ATM (Automated Teller Machine) or using a computer.

Nowadays, internet-based EFT is getting popular. In this case, a customer uses the website provided by the bank, logs in to the bank’s website and registers another bank account. He/she then places a request to transfer certain amount to that account. Customer’s bank transfers the amount to other account if it is in the same bank, otherwise the transfer request is forwarded to an ACH (Automated Clearing House) to transfer the amount to other account and the amount is deducted from the customer’s account. Once the amount is transferred to other account, the customer is notified of the fund transfer by the bank.

Consumer — to — Business

In this model, a consumer approaches a website showing multiple business organizations
for a particular service. The consumer places an estimate of amount he/she wants to spend for a particular service. For example, the comparison of interest rates of personal loan/car loan provided by various banks via websites. A business organization who fulfills the consumer’s requirement within the specified budget, approaches the customer and provides its services.

Consumer Shopping Procedure

A consumer −

• determines the requirement.
• searches available items on the website meeting the requirment.
• compares similar items for price, delivery date or any other terms.
• places the order.
• pays the bill.
• receives the delivered item and review/inspect them.
• consults the vendor to get after service support or returns the product if not satisfied with the delivered product.

Consumer — to — Consumer

Business — to — Consumer