UNIT-1

Introduction-E-Business

E-Business-Meaning

Electronic business, commonly referred to as "e-Business" or "e-business", or

an internet business may be defined as the application of information and
communication technologies (ICT) in support of all the activities of the business

Electronic business (e-business) refers to the use of the Web, Internet, intranets,
extranets, or some combination thereof to conduct business. E-business is similar to e-
commerce, but it goes beyond the simple buying and selling of products and services
online.

E-business includes a much wider range of businesses processes, such as supply chain
management, electronic order processing and Customer relationship management.

Characteristics:

1) Ubiquity: Ubiquity means, which is available everywhere. E-

Business is ubiquitous, meaning that it is available just about everywhere at all times.
You can surf the internet as long as you have an internet connection or a wi-fi network.
That makes it possible for you to shop from your desktop or mobile devices at home, at
work, in your car, or even in the toilet. For example, you can open the
website www.yahoo.com anywhere in the world.

2) Interactivity: E-Business interacts with its stakeholders like customers, suppliers,

employees, middlemen, government, etc. in the form of text, voice, video, pictures with
the help of technology available. For example, a customer can give a complaint on the
website of a company.

3) Global reach: E-business can reach any part of the globe with the help of
available technology and does its business activities. It is possible to reach every
customer across the globe provided that the required technology is present in that
geographical location. For example, www.dell.com can sell its products to any customer
in the world with the help of the internet.
4) Hardware and software: E-Business is characterized by having hardware and
software in its infrastructure. Hardware like client computer, server, cables used in the
network, etc. and software like the operating system, wireless
applications, internet browser, etc. are essential components of E-Business.

5) Universal standards: The unusual feature of E-Business is the technical standard

of the Internet. The technical standard of e-commerce is shared by all countries around
the world. The standards are universal and irrespective of the country or region. This
standard can make e-business to exist more easily, which can reduce the cost.

6) Information Density: The density of information the Internet has greatly

improved, as long as the total amount and all markets, consumers, and businesses
quality information. The electronic commerce technology, reduce information collection,
storage, communication, and processing cost. At the same time, the accuracy and
timeliness of information technology increase greatly, information is more useful, more
important than ever.

7) Personalization: E-commerce technology allows for personalization. Business can

be adjusted for a name, a person’s interests, and past purchase message objects and
marketing messages to a specific individual. The technology also allows for custom.
Merchants can change the product or service based on user preferences, or previous
behavior.

Traditional Vs. E-Business

Basis for
Traditional Business E-business
comparison
Meaning Traditional business is a branch of business E-Business means carrying out
that focuses on the exchange of products commercial transactions or
and services, and includes all those exchange of information,
activities which encourages exchange, in electronically on the internet.
some way or the other.
Processing of The transactions will take place manually in Business transactions happen
Transactions the business. with the help of technology.
Accessibility The business activities are carried for a Business transactions can
limited time period happen 24/7.
Physical Goods can be inspected physically before Goods cannot be inspected
inspection purchase. physically before purchase.
Customer The communication between a business Here the interaction will be
interaction and its stakeholders will be face to face. between individual and screen.
 Basis for
Traditional Business E-business
comparison
Scope of Limited to a particular geographical Worldwide reach
business location.
Information No uniform platform for the exchange of Provides a uniform platform for
exchange information. information exchange.
Resource The focus of the business will be on the Resources will focus on the
focus supply of resources. demand for the products and
services
Business There will be a linear relationship between The relationship will be end to
Relationship business and its customers end.
Marketing The marketing activities will be more or The marketing activities can
less one way happen in both ways
Payment The payment options will be limited There are many payment
options available
Delivery of Instantly Takes time
goods

E-BUISNESS FRAMEWORK

E-Business framework: It has three layers of a system with business applications,

support services, and infrastructure.
I. Business Applications: E-business applications are web-based applications that can
be implemented to perform tasks for businesses. These applications are not just for
online businesses, but also for traditional ones. Behind the scenes, e-
business applications usually rely on relationships between company servers and end-
user computers. Common e-business applications provide some way for a company to
interact with consumers on the web or to perform tasks related to meeting consumer
needs. Following are the areas of applications in E-Business.

• E-Procurement: E-Procurement or electronic procurement refers to the process of

purchase and sale of goods or services through electronic methods, primarily
the Internet. It is an alternative to the manual process of procurement and is certainly
superior to the latter in many respects. Organizations are increasingly opting for e-
Procurement platforms, realizing their potential to curb irregularities and unnecessary
costs. E-Procurement consists of Indent Management, RFX creation, e-Tendering, e-
Auctioning, Vendor Management and Contract Management among other processes.
An e-Procurement solution can automate the whole process, thus saving the
organizations from the hassle and irregularities involved in manual procurement. E-
Procurement portals are designed for users to register as a buyer or supplier, submit all
the relevant documents online, and take part in the tendering process that follows.

• E-Contracting: E contracts, or electronic contracts, are a type of contract formed

online. The interaction between the parties in forming the contract can be by many
different electronic means: e-mail, through a computer program, or by two electronic
agents programmed to recognize the formation of the contract. Business organizations
buy products online and make contracts online.

• E-Marketing: E-marketing is the process of marketing a product or service using

the Internet. E-marketing not only includes marketing on the Internet but also includes
marketing done via e-mail and wireless media. It uses a range of technologies to help
connect businesses to their customers.

• E-Payment: An electronic payment (e-payment), in short, can be simply defined

as paying for goods or services on the internet. It includes all financial operations
using electronic devices, such as computers, smartphones, or tablets. E-
payments come with various methods, like credit or debit card payments or bank
transfers

• E-Selection: E-selection is the perfect online service bundle tool for workforce
selection processes. E-selection instantly provides an accurate picture of a candidate’s
fitness for filling a specific position, of your colleagues’ strengths and weaknesses, and
of their inherent potential. As tools that assist in the tasks of HR professionals, our tests
are suitable not only for choosing among external candidates, but they will also be
useful in your company’s internal processes, such as promoting, transferring, and
training of managers, CEOs, and other professionals.

• E-CRM: Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is a way to identify, acquire,

and retain customers – a business’s greatest asset. By providing the means to manage
and coordinate customer interactions, CRM helps companies maximize the value of
every customer interaction and in turn improve corporate performance. E-CRM, or
Electronic Customer Relationship Management, is an integrated online sales, marketing,
and service strategy that is used to identify, attract, and retain an organization’s
customers. It describes improved and increased communication between an
organization and its clients by creating and enhancing customer interaction through
innovative technology.

II. Support Services:

Support services of E-Business include

• Legal services: These are the services which are provided by e-

business organizations to their clients related to legal issues.

• Tax services: Services related to paying taxes, monitoring payment of taxes,

calculating tax, generating tax statement etc. will be provided by e-business.

• Web services: These services include building a website, maintaining a website,

updating the content in a website, and other related services.

• Security: These services are related to protecting online business transactions like
buying, selling, payment, feedback from customers, business data management, etc.

• Information services: These services include generating customer information,

processing information, storing information, and disseminating information.

III. Infrastructure:

E-business infrastructure refers to the combination of hardware such as servers and

clients PCs in an organization, the network used to link this hardware and the software
applications used to deliver services to workers within the e-business and also to its
partners and customers. Infrastructure also includes the architecture of the networks,
hardware, and software and where it is located. Finally, infrastructure can also be
considered to include the methods for publishing data and documents accessed
through e-business applications. A key decision with managing this infrastructure is
which elements are located within the company and which are managed externally as
third-party managed applications, data servers and networks.

Infrastructure of e-business has five layers as explained below.

Advantages & Disadvantages of E-Business

Advantages of E-Business:

• Easy to Set Up: It is easy to set up an electronic business. You can set up an
online business even by sitting at home if you have the required software, a
device, and the internet.
• Cheaper than Traditional Business: Electronic business is much cheaper than
traditional business. The cost taken to set up an e-business is much higher than
the cost required to set up a traditional business. Also, the transaction cost is
effectively less.
 • No Geographical Boundaries: There are no geographical boundaries for e-
business. Anyone can order anything from anywhere at any time. This is one of
the benefits of e-business.
• Government Subsidies: Online businesses get benefits from the government as
the government is trying to promote digitalization.
• Flexible Business Hours: Since the internet is always available. E-business breaks
down the time barriers that location-based businesses encounter. As long as
someone has an Internet connection, you may be able to reach and sell your
product or service to these visitors to your business website.
• Cheaper Marketing, More Control: Traditionally, companies had to rely on
advertising agencies to promote their brand and educate people about it. Now
there are lots of ways to pour money back into your business. When you control
how your product is represented, you control your company. E-business allows
owners to embrace their power in ways they haven't been able to before.

Disadvantages

· Lack of Personal Touch: E-business lacks the personal touch. One cannot touch or
feel the product. So it is difficult for the consumers to check the quality of a product.
Also, the human touch is missing as well. In the traditional model, we have contact with
the salesperson. This lends it a touch of humanity and credibility. It also builds trust with
the customer. An e-Business model will always miss out on such attributes.

· Delivery Time: The delivery of the products takes time. In traditional business, you get
the product as soon as you buy it. But that doesn’t happen in online business. This lag
time often discourages customers. However, e-businesses are trying to resolve such
issues by promising very limited delivery times. For example, Amazon now assures one-
day delivery. This is an improvement but does not resolve the issue completely

· Security Issues: There are a lot of people who scam through online business. Also, it is
easier for hackers to get your financial details. It has a few security and integrity issues.
This also causes distrust among potential customers.

· Difficult to try before buying: You can say that online shoppers will not have
much

ability to inspect physically, even sometimes they lose the power to negotiate the price
and payment terms might exist different as compared to local stores.
INTERNET AS E-BUSINESS ENABLER

Challenges to E-Business

· Lack of infrastructure: E-Business has the biggest challenge in the form of poor
infrastructure in the country. The internet penetration in the country is much lower than
in the USA and China. Rural India doesn’t have access to internet infrastructure and
businesses cannot afford to invest huge capital for infrastructure.

· Lack of computer literacy: Computer literacy in the country is very less when
compared with developed countries. This hinders the development of e-business in the
country. The estimated digital literacy in the country is approximately around 10% based
on a survey conducted.

· Security: Despite the fact that the internet has come a long way from its ‘open’
days, the fear of online transactions, be it financial or data transfer, is very high in the
consumer’s mind. Hacking, identity theft, credit card stealing, bank information stealing,
etc. are some of the greatest security issues that hinder the consumer from trusting
online businesses. Eventually, this means loss of potential business for organizations.

· Lack of trained personnel: E-Business requires professionals who are trained in

technologies required to run E-Business. But there is a shortage of these professionals
in the country. Institutions and Universities take a longer time to adopt new trends in
their curriculum, which leads to a gap between industry requirements and training.

· Feature phones still rule the market: Though the total number of mobile phone
users in India is very high, a significant majority still use feature phones and not
smartphones. As a result, this consumer group is unable to make e-business purchases
on the move. Though India is still a couple of years away from the scales tipping in favor
of smartphones, the rapid downward spiral in the price of entry-level smartphones is an
encouraging indication.

· Lack of awareness: When it comes to the ratio of people having awareness of

the internet and online shopping, the scenario isn't quite flattering. The majority of the
Indian population is still not aware of the internet's existence and its uses. Even when
you talk about the internet-savvy urban population that is having smartphones,
awareness of online shopping and its functionality is still a far cry. Most of them aren't
aware of online fraud and corruption while making online transactions and thus the
darkness prevails. This is by far the biggest challenge faced by the e-business industry
in India.
Internet as E-Business Enabler:

Internet: The internet is a globally connected network system that uses TCP/IP to
transmit data via various types of media. The internet is the network of global
exchanges including private, public, business, academic and government networks
connected by guided, wireless and fiber-optic technologies.

Role of the Internet in E-Business:

The Internet enables the activities of E-Business by connecting the people across the
globe. The role of the internet in E-Business is explained as follows.

· It can enhance the profits of organizations by reducing the operational costs.

· It will help the business to increase its visibility among the customers.

· It provides the platform for customer support services round the clock.

· It enables the business to network with people and organization across the globe.

· It can build research capabilities among business organizations.

· It provides digital communications and automation in all the verticals of business.

· It develops workplace and business efficiency

· It provides operational flexibility and productivity, eg remote working or outsourcing

· It helps to access a diverse range of business tools and applications

 UNIT-2

E-Business Models
E-Business Model: It refers to the way in which a business is conducted and the
existence of relationship between buyer and seller.

Types of E-Business Models

Based on the nature of transactions online, E-Business models are classified as follows.

· Business-to-Business (B2B)

· Business-to- Consumer (B2C)

· Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C)

· Business-to-Government (B2G)

· Government-to-Business (G2B)

· Citizen to Government (C2G)

· Consumer-to-Business (C2B)

. Peer to Peer (P2P)

B2C Model

B2C, the acronym for "business-to-consumer", is a business model based on

transactions between a company, that sells products or services, and individual
customers who are the endusers of these products. B2C ecommerce definition suggests
the commerce transaction through a company website featured with online catalog.
Most Internet users are familiar with the B2C ecommerce model. Consumers appreciate
the convenience of online shopping where they now can purchase clothes, electronics,
media subscriptions and services via Internet. In the past couple of years, the total
online revenue in Europe has been worth about 500 billion euros. And according to
reports, the further growth of industry is predicted; ecommerce market's full potential
has not yet been reached.

Types of B2C Model:

Based on the nature of the business, B2C is classified as follows.

• Portal

• E-tailer

• Content Provider

• Transaction Broker

• Service Provider

• Market Creator

• Community provider

1. Portal: A web portal is a specially designed website that brings information from
diverse sources, like emails, online forums, and search engines, together in a uniform
way. It is two kinds.

a) Horizontal portal: It offers an integrated package of services and content such as

search, e-mail, chat, etc. e.g.: yahoo.com, msn.com

b) Vertical portal: It offers services and products to the specialized

marketplace.A gateway or portal to information related to a particular industry, such
as human resources, health care, insurance, automobiles, or food manufacturing. E.g.:
iBoats.com

2. E-tailer: The E-tailer is an online retailer, who sells products and services to
customers online. These E-tailers are further classified into different types.

a)Virtual merchant: Online version of the retail store where customers can shop 24/7
with comfort. E.g.: Amazon.com.
b) Click and mortar: Online distributor channel for a company that also has physical
stores. e.g.: Walmart.com.

c)Catalog merchant: Online version of the direct catalog. The catalog merchant has
generally lower prices than other retailers and lower overhead expenses due to the
smaller size of the store and lack of large showroom space. E.g.: LandsEnd.com,

d) Online mall: Online version of a shopping mall. E.g.: Fashionmall.com

e)Manufacturer direct: Online sales made directly by manufacturers. E.g.: Dell.com,

3. Content provider: Information and entertainment providers like newspapers,

sports sites or other online sources offering up-to-date information (news, special
interest, photos, video, artwork, etc.) to customers. They do not own but aggregate and
distribute the content produced by others. E.g.: cricinfo.com. cnn.com

4. Transaction broker: Processors of online sales transactions, such as stockbrokers

and travel agents that increase customer`s productivity by helping them do things
faster. It assists buyers, sellers, or both during transactions and acts as an agent for
larger markets. Furthermore, they sell other products rather than their own
product. Transaction brokers receive commissions for every transaction that had been
successfully concluded to sustain their business. One legal advantage to sellers is that
the seller is usually not legally responsible for the actions of transaction brokers acting
within the scope of the transaction. E.g.: indiainfoline.com, monster.com

5. Service provider: Companies that make money by selling users a service, rather
than a product. Offers services online, like consultancy, trade knowledge, expertise, etc.
e.g.: Incometax.gov.in, Paytm.com

1. Market creator: Web-based businesses that use internet technology to create

markets that bring buyers and sellers together. The success factor is attracting a
sufficient critical number of sellers and buyers to the marketplace and speed, ability to
become operational quickly. E.g.: eBay.com, priceline.com, upperbid.com

2. Community provider: Sites where individuals with particular interests, hobbies,

and common experience can come together and compare. Communities utilize
electronic tools such as forums, chat rooms, e-mail lists, message boards, and other
interactive Internet mechanisms, which are usually tailored to the particular community.
E.g.: mouthshut.com, team-bhp.com.

Players in the B2C model:

1) Consumer: One who buys products or services online. For example, a customer
buying a product from a manufacturer through amazon.in.

2) Seller: One who sells products to end customers online. For example, a
manufacturer selling his products through amazon.in

3) Intermediary: Any company which facilitates transactions between consumers.

For example, amazon.in is an intermediary between seller and consumer.

Consumer shopping process in B2C:

1.Basic requirement determination.

2.Search for available items that can meet the requirement.

3.Compare the candidate items with multiple perspectives

4.Place an Order.

5.Pay the Bill.

6.Receive the delivered items and inspect them.

7.Contact the vendor to get after-service and support, or to return if disappointed.

B2B model

B2B Model: A website following the B2B business model sells its products to an
intermediate buyer who then sells the products to the final customer. As an example, a
wholesaler places an order from a company's website and after receiving the
consignment, it sells the endproduct to the final customer who comes to buy the
product at the wholesaler's retail outlet.

B2B identifies both the seller as well as the buyer as business entities. B2B covers a large
number of applications, which enables businesses to form relationships with their
distributors, resellers, suppliers, etc. Following are the leading items in B2B eCommerce.

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

Key Technologies
Following are the key technologies used in B2B e-commerce −

• 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 limited access to a portion of the enterprise
intranet/network.
• Back-End Information System Integration − Back-end information systems are
database management systems used to manage business data.

Types of B2B model

Following are the different types of models in B2B e-commerce

• Supplier Oriented marketplace − In this type of model, a common marketplace

provided by suppliers is used by both individual customers as well as business
users. A supplier offers e-stores for sales promotion.
• Buyer Oriented marketplace − In this type of model, the buyer has his/her own
marketplace or e-market. He invites suppliers to bid on the product's catalog. A
Buyer company opens a bidding site.
• Intermediary Oriented marketplace − In this type of model, an intermediary
company runs a marketplace where business buyers and sellers can transact with
each other.

Basis for
B2B B2C
Comparison
The selling of goods and services The transaction in which business
between two business entities is sells the goods and services to the
Meaning
known as Business to Business or consumer is called Business to
B2B. Consumer or B2C.
 Basis for
B2B B2C
Comparison
A manufacturing firm or service
Customer End-user will be a customer.
provider will be customer
The focus will be on the The focus will be on product and
Focus on
relationship with customer product benefits.
Quantity of It deals with a large quantity of It deals with small quantity of
merchandise products products.
Supplier - Manufacturer
Relationship Manufacturer - Wholesaler Retailer - Consumer
Wholesaler - Retailer
Relationship It is mainly long term relationship Relationship between seller and
horizon between seller and buyer buyer is comparatively shorter.
Buying and
It is comparatively lengthy It is short
Selling cycle
Buying Planned and Logical, based on
Emotional, based on want and desire.
Decision needs.
Creation of It is created through trust and It is created through advertising and
Brand Value mutual relationship promotion.

C2C, C2G & B2G

C2C Model:

C2C, or customer-to-customer, or consumer-to-consumer, is a business model that

facilitates the transaction of products or services between customers.C2C represents a
market environment where one customer purchases goods from another customer
using a third-party business or platform to facilitate the transaction. C2C companies are
a new type of model that has emerged with e-commerce technology and the sharing
economy.

Customers benefit from the competition for products and often find items that
are difficult to locate elsewhere. Also, margins can be higher than traditional pricing
methods for sellers because there are minimal costs due to the absence of retailers or
wholesalers. C2C sites are convenient because there is no need to visit a brick-and-
mortar store. Sellers list their products online, and the buyers come to them.
Players in C2C Model

1) Consumer: One who buys or sells products or services online with help of an
intermediary.

2) Intermediary: Any company which facilitates transactions between consumers.

e.g.: e-Bay.com, olx.com, craigslist.com

Advantages:

• There are minimal costs involved with the lack of retailers and wholesalers, keeping
the margins higher for sellers and prices lower for buyers.
• There is also the convenience factor – instead of trying to sell items in person at a
brick-and-mortar store, consumers can simply list their products online and wait for
buyers to come to them.

• Buyers don't need to drive around and search through stores for an item they want –
they just search for it on a C2C site.

Disadvantages:

• Credit card payments can be difficult, as the platforms are not necessarily secure and
able to process such payments.

• There is a lack of quality control – since the sellers are consumers themselves, there is
little recourse for poorly made or misrepresented products.

• On the flip side, because the buyers are consumers themselves, the payment
guarantees can be hard to enforce.

Types of C2C:

Following are the types of C2C model based on the nature of transactions.

• Online Auctions

• Online Classifieds

• Online Selling

B2G Model:

B2G e-commerce means business-to-government e-commerce, a concept where

government agencies and businesses can use the Internet to transact business. A
typical B2G e-commerce website offers an efficient system for business information
exchange as well as the facilitation of business transactions over the Internet.

Business-to-government (B2G) is a business model that refers to businesses selling

products, services or information to governments or government agencies.
B2G networks or models provide a way for businesses to bid on government projects or
products that governments might purchase or need for their organizations. This can
encompass public sector organizations that propose the bids. B2G activities are
increasingly being conducted via the Internet through real-time bidding.

• E.g.: www.gs1india.org

C2G model

It is an acronym for Citizen to Government. It constitutes the areas where a consumer

(or citizen) interacts with the government. C2G applications usually include tax payment,
issuance of certificates or other documents, etc. C2G applications are under the scope
of transactions that are done and handled more efficiently and effectively with e-
Commerce systems and technologies.

C2G applications usually include tax payment, issuance of certificates or other

documents, etc. Although we cannot strictly define consumer or citizen to government
as e-Commerce we can see several C2G applications under the scope of transactions
that are done and handled more efficiently and effectively with e-Commerce systems
and technologies.

Examples where consumers provide services to government have yet to be

implemented. It is not that popular approach and is quite rare. A possible example could
be when a hacker is offering his services to the government for defense against cyber
terrorism.

E.g: incometax.gov.in, irctc.gov.in etc

Other Model of Business

G2B Model:

G2B concept is used for expressing the relationship between public administration and
enterprises. The relationship may refer the demand for information from the enterprises
in any life situation or a transfer of an official document to the statutory body. The
abbreviation is usually used to refer to the ICT solution that converts such
communication to the electronic form or to describe a solution that simplifies the
communication between public administration and enterprises

E.g.: tenders.gov.in

The model covers an electronic exchange of any information between businesses and
the government, usually using internet so the cooperation or communication is more
efficient than is usually off the internet. In G2B, government agencies and business use
websites, procurement marketplaces, applications, web services.

The relationship may refer the demand for information from the enterprises in any life
situation or a transfer of an official document to the statutory body. The model is usually
used to refer to the ICT solution that converts such communication to the electronic
form or to describe a solution that simplifies the communication between public
administration and enterprises (e.g. internet portal of the procurement authority or
electronic solutions for purchasing).

G2G Model:

Government to government (G2G) is the electronic sharing of data and/or information

systems between government agencies, departments or organizations. The goal of G2G
is to support e-government initiatives by improving communication, data access and
data sharing.

e.g.: www.gst.gov.in

P2P Model:

Peer-to-peer (P2P) is a decentralized communications model in which each party has the
same capabilities and either party can initiate a communication session. Unlike the
client/server model, in which the client makes a service request and the server fulfills the
request, the P2P network model allows each node to function as both a client and
server.
e.g.: Airbnb, Aristotle Circle, eBay, Match.com, and Zopa

M-Commerce

M-commerce (mobile commerce) is the buying and selling of goods and services
through wireless handheld devices such as cellular telephone and personal digital
assistants (PDAs). Known as next-generation e-commerce, m-commerce enables users
to access the Internet without needing to find a place to plug in.

Infrastructure: Infrastructure of M- Commerce includes hardware, software and

network. Hardware like mobile phones, tabs, laptops, PDAs etc. are used in M-
Commerce. Software includes Micro browser, Mobile client operating system (OS),
Bluetooth, Mobile application user interface, Back-end legacy application software,
Application middleware and Wireless middleware. Network includes wireless
transmission media like Microwave, Satellites, Radio, Infrared, Cellular radio technology.

Mobile Payment: Mobile Payment can be offered as a stand-alone service. Mobile

Payment could also be an important enabling service for other m-commerce services
(e.g. mobile ticketing, shopping,)
 UNIT-3

E-BUSINESS SECURITY
E-Business Security: E- Business security refers to the principles which guide
safe electronic transactions, allowing the buying and selling of goods and services
through the Internet, but with protocols in place to provide safety for those involved.

Characteristics of E-business security:

1) 1) Privacy: One of the most obvious E-Business security basics is privacy, which in
this situation means not sharing information with unauthorized parties. When you shop
online, your personal details or account information should not be accessible to anyone
except the seller you have chosen to share it with. Any disclosure of that information by
the merchant would be a breach of confidentiality. The business is responsible to
provide at least the minimum in encryption, virus protection, and a firewall so that bank
details and credit card information remain private.
2) Integrity: A second concept which is crucial within secure E-Business is the idea of
integrity—that none of the information shared online by the customer will be altered in
any way. This principle states that a secure transaction includes unchanged data—that
the business is only using exactly what was entered into the Internet site by the buyer.
Any tampering with information is breaking the confidence of the buyer in the security
of the transaction and the integrity of the company in general.
3) Authentication: For E-Business to take place, both seller and buyer have to be
who they say they are. A business cannot sell unless it’s real, the products are real, and
the sale will go through as described online. The buyer must also provide proof of
identification so that the merchant can feel secure about the sale. In E-Business,
fraudulent identification and authentication are possible, and many businesses hire an
expert to make sure these kinds of E-Business security basics are in place. Common
solutions include technological solutions—customer logins and passwords or additional
credit card PINs.
4) Non-repudiation: Repudiation is denial, and good business depends on both
buyers and sellers following through on the part of the transaction which originated
with them—not denying those actions. Since E-Business happens in cyberspace, usually
without any live video, it can feel less safe and sure. The legal principle of non-
repudiation adds another level of security by confirming that the information which was
sent between parties was indeed received and that a purchase or email or signature
cannot be denied by the person who completed the transaction. Customers who don’t
feel transactions are secure won’t buy. Hesitation on the part of the buyer will destroy E-
Business potential. Any breach will cost a business in lost revenues and consumer trust.
These E-Business security basics can guide any business owner regarding safe online
transaction protocol.
5) 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.
6) Encryption: Information should be encrypted and decrypted only by an authorized
user.
7) Auditability: Data should be recorded in such a way that it can be audited for
integrity requirements.

Security Threats:
In simple words, you can say that using the internet for unfair means with an intention
of stealing, fraud and security breach.
There are various types of e-commerce threats. Some are accidental, some are
purposeful, and some of them are due to human error. The most common security
threats are phishing attacks, money thefts, data misuse, hacking, credit card frauds, and
unprotected services.

Security threats can happen at three levels. They are

1) Client server threats

2) Web server threats
3) Communication channel threats

1) Client server threats: Following are the client lever security threats:

1. Computer Viruses: Perhaps the most well-known computer security threat, a

computer virus is a program written to alter the way a computer operates, without
the permission or knowledge of the user. A virus replicates and executes itself,
usually doing damage to your computer in the process. Carefully evaluating free
software, downloads from peer-to-peer file sharing sites, and emails from unknown
senders are crucial to avoiding viruses. Most web browsers today have security
settings which can be ramped up for optimum defense against online threats. But, as
we'll say again and again in this post, the single most-effective way of fending off
viruses is up-to-date antivirus software from a reputable provider.

2. Spyware Threats: A serious computer security threat, spyware is any program

that monitors your online activities or installs programs without your consent for
profit or to capture personal information. We’ve amassed a wealth of knowledge that
will help you combat spyware threats and stay safe online. While many users won't
want to hear it, reading terms and conditions is a good way to build an
understanding of how your activity is tracked online. And of course, if a company
you don't recognize is advertising for a deal that seems too good to be true, be sure
you have an internet security solution in place and click with caution.

3. Hackers and Predators: People, not computers, create computer security threats
and malware. Hackers and predators are programmers who victimize others for their
own gain by breaking into computer systems to steal, change, or destroy information
as a form of cyber-terrorism. These online predators can compromise credit card
information, lock you out of your data, and steal your identity.

4. Phishing: Masquerading as a trustworthy person or business, phishers attempt to

steal sensitive financial or personal information through fraudulent email or instant
messages. Phishing attacks are some of the most successful methods for
cybercriminals looking to pull off a data breach. Antivirus solutions with identity theft
protection can be "taught" to recognize phishing threats in fractions of a second.

5. DoS: A Denial of Service (DoS) attack is performed by one machine and

its internet connection, by flooding a website with packets and making it impossible
for legitimate users to access the content of flooded website. Fortunately, you can’t
really overload a server with a single other server or a PC anymore. In the past years
it hasn’t been that common if anything, then by flaws in the protocol.
2) Web server security threats: Following are the web server security threats:

1. Database Security threats: Most of the business databases contain username/user

passwords without keeping in view the security. In any situation some intruder or hacker
may get user’s personal important information to misuse the secured data imposing as
the authorized user and keeps the private information. It is a fact that user data are kept
in e-Business systems from where they and get the beneficial data from their databases.
These databases are linked with the web-server. These databases connected to
the Internet or web services if mishandled or misused then they may damage or give
loss to the companies by changing the information/data or getting important
information from them only for their personnel use.

2. Common gateway interface (CGI) security threats: These are the programs which
on misuse may generate a security problem. These programs can be triggered to fire
with their characteristics to obtain their target associated with them. These programs set
the changes of all data from server connected to some other program of a database
program. These programs put the data or change in data to the web pages they are
associated with. Defective or malicious CGI with free access to resources disable the
system. CGI can call privileged original programs of the system to finish files, or find
confidential data or information which may be passwords or highly secured data.

3. Security threats to password hacking: These are the most common and the
simplest security threat against a password-based system is to guess passwords.
Guessing of passwords requires – a) Access to the complement b) The complementation
functions c) And the authentication functions. If no one of these three are changed by
the passing of time the password is guessed. In that case the hacker uses the password
to access the system information.

4. Internet-server security threats: The HTTP requests made by the customers are
obtained by the Internet-server software which give response and reply
on internet web. The web services are attached with these Internet-server software
keeping in view the risks. If the software is quite complex, there is maximum possibility
of getting coding errors or bugs which are the security weakness holes to provide entry
for the malicious attacker.
5. e-Business server security threats: The business server/ web-server, responds to
requests from web browsers through the HTTP protocol and CGI. The e-business server
software suitability with FTP server, mail server, far ends login server and OS. These
operating systems (OS) may have security issues

3) Communication channel security threats: Following are the communication

channel threats

Secrecy Threats: Privacy is the protection of individual rights to nondisclosure. Theft of

sensitive or personal information is a significant danger. Your IP Address and browser
you use is continually revealed while on the web. Thus the primary fear of conducting
electronic commerce is the fear of theft of sensitive personal information, including
credit card numbers, names, addresses, and personal preferences.Special software
applications called sniffer programmes provide the means to tap into the Internet and
record information that passes through a particular computer while traveling from its
source to its destination

Integrity Threats: Integrity threats refer to the unauthorized modification of data in

the Internet channel.

Active Threats:-
Active wiretapping takes place when an unauthorized person gets access to the signals
carrying the e-commerce message, for example, by tapping the telephone wires and
changing the content of the message stream of information. This affects the integrity of
the data and makes it unreliable.

Cyber vandalism:-
Cyber vandalism takes place when an unauthorized person changes the content of a
Web page, destroys it, defaces it, or replaces a Web site’s regular content with their
own, for example, hacking into the server of the website.

Masquerading:-
Here someone pretends to be someone else. This can be done by means of spoofing.
Someone creates a fictitious website in place of the real one so as to spoof website
visitors. All orders to the real website are then redirected to the fake website where the
orders are changed before passing on to the real website.
Subsequent accesses will then appear to come from a particular domain, when in fact
the person accessing the web does not know that he\she can alter a URL on the web
page so that later accesses appear as if they were handled by a trusted site, when in fact
they are not.

Necessity Threats:-
The purpose of necessity threats (delay, denial or denial-of-service), is to disrupt normal
computer processing or delay processing entirely. A computer that has experienced a
necessity threat slows processing to an intolerable speed and this will encourage
customers to go to the websites of competitors.

IMPLEMENTING E-BUSINESS SECURITY

Implementing E-business security

—Security requirement specification: Determining the security requirements.
—Security policy specification: Defining the security policy
—Security infrastructure specification: Determining the software and hardware
—Security testing: Conducting a test run
—Requirement validation: Validating security

Protecting Client Computer

The use of computers across businesses of all types has created vulnerabilities for those
businesses in the individual client computer. A client computer is a computing device
that connects to a network in one of several ways, but the term typically describes a
laptop or workstation computer. Because client computers are connected to networks of
other computers, if an attacker or a virus gains control of a networked computer, it can
be used as a launching pad to attack any or all of the devices on the network. Following
are the ways to protect client computer from possible threats.

1. Keep up with system and software security updates: While software and security
updates can often seem like an annoyance, it really is important to stay on top of them.
Aside from adding extra features, they often cover security holes. Typically, if an update
is available for your OS, you’ll get a notification. You can often opt to update
immediately or set it to run later.

2. Being suspicious: It should go without saying, being suspicious is one of the best
things you can do to keep your computer secure. Admittedly, with hacker techniques
becoming increasingly sophisticated, it can be difficult to tell when you’re under attack.
All it takes is one email open or link click and your computer could be compromised.
3. Enable a firewall
A firewall acts as a barrier between your computer or network and the internet. It
effectively closes the computer ports that prevent communication with your device. This
protects your computer by stopping threats from entering the system and spreading
between devices. It can also help prevent your data leaving your computer.

4. Adjust your browser settings

Most browsers have options that enable you to adjust the level of privacy and security
while you browse. These can help lower the risk of malware infections reaching your
computer and malicious hackers attacking your device. Some browsers even enable you
to tell websites not to track your movements by blocking cookies.

5. Install antivirus and anti-spyware software: Any machine connected to

the internet is inherently vulnerable to viruses and other threats, including malware,
ransomware, and Trojan attacks. An antivirus software isn’t a completely foolproof
option but it can definitely help. Spyware is a specific type of malware that is designed
to secretly infect a computer. If anti-spyware has been installed in the computer, then
it’s very possible you can remove spyware.

6. Password protect your software and lock your device

Most web-connected software that you install on your system requires login credentials.
The most important thing here is not to use the same password across all applications.
This makes it far too easy for someone to hack into all of your accounts and possibly
steal your identity.

7. Encrypt your data

Whether your computer houses your life’s work or a load of files with sentimental value
like photos and videos, it’s likely worth protecting that information. One way to ensure it
doesn’t fall into the wrong hands is to encrypt your data. Encrypted data will require
resources to decrypt it; this alone might be enough to deter a hacker from pursuing
action.
8. Use a VPN
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is an excellent way to step up your security, especially
when browsing online. While using a VPN, all of your internet traffic is encrypted and
tunneled through an intermediary server in a separate location. This masks your IP,
replacing it with a different one, so that your ISP can no longer monitor your activity.

ENCRYPTION AND DECRYPTION

Encryption:

Cryptography is closely related to the disciplines of cryptology and cryptanalysis.

Cryptography is most often associated with scrambling plaintext (ordinary text,
sometimes referred to as clear text) into cipher text (a process called encryption), then
back again (known as decryption).

Encryption: Conversion of data into a form called a cipher text that cannot be easily
understood by unauthorised people. It is the translation of data into access code.

— Example: Clear text: A P P L E

Cipher text: E T T P I

It is two types, they are secret key or symmetrical encryption and public key or
asymmetrical encryption

Public key encryption: Public-key cryptography, or asymmetric cryptography, is

an encryption scheme that uses two mathematically related, but not identical, keys - a
public key and a private key. Unlike symmetric key algorithms that rely on one key to
both encrypt and decrypt, each key performs a unique function. The public key is used
to encrypt and the private key is used to decrypt. It is also called as
asymmetrical encryption.

The main business applications for public-key cryptography are digital signatures in
which content is digitally signed with an individual’s private key and is verified by the
individual’s public key and encryption, where content is encrypted using an individual’s
public key and can only be decrypted with the individual’s private key.
For example making payment using QR code through an UPI. QR code is the public key
and PIN will be private key.

Secret key encryption: A private key, also known as a secret key, is a variable
in cryptography that is used with an algorithm to encrypt and decrypt code. Secret keys
are only shared with the key’s generator, making it highly secure. It is also called as
symmetrical encryption.

Due to the better performance and faster speed of symmetric encryption (compared to
asymmetric), symmetric cryptography is typically used for bulk encryption / encrypting
large amounts of data, e.g. for database encryption.

For example username and password used to open an account by the user.

Decryption

Decryption is generally the reverse process of encryption. It is the process of decoding

the data which has been encrypted into a secret format. An authorized user can only
decrypt data because decryption requires a secret key or password.

SSL PROTOCOL

SSL Protocol
SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is a standard security protocol for establishing encrypted links
between a web server and a browser in an online communication. The usage
of SSL technology ensures that all data transmitted between the web server and browser
remains encrypted. SSL was first developed by Netscape in 1994 and became
an internet standard in 1996. SSL is a cryptographic protocol to secure network
Mechanism of SSL Protocol: A browser or server attempts to connect to a website (i.e. a
web server) secured with SSL. The browser/server requests that the web server identify
itself. The web server sends the browser/server a copy of its SSL certificate. The
browser/server checks to see whether or not it trusts the SSL certificate. If so, it sends a
message to the web server. The web server sends back a digitally signed
acknowledgement to start an SSL encrypted session. Encrypted data is shared between
the browser/server and the web server
SSL is a secure protocol which runs above TCP/IP and allows users to encrypt data and
authenticate servers/vendors identity securely
Functions of SSL Protocol
— SSL uses TCP/IP on behalf of the higher-level protocols.
— Allows an SSL-enabled server to authenticate itself to an SSL-enabled client.
— Allows the client to authenticate itself to the server;
— Allows both machines to establish an encrypted connection.
— Use public key encryption techniques to generate shared secret

Firewall
Software or hardware and software combination installed on a network to control
packet traffic. Provides a defense between the network to be protected and
the Internet, or other network that could pose a threat.
In computing, a firewall is a network security system that monitors and controls
incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predetermined security rules. A firewall
typically establishes a barrier between a trusted internal network and untrusted external
network, such as the Interne

Types of firewall:
—Packet-filter firewalls: Examine data flowing back and forth between a trusted
network and the Internet. This firewall performs a simple check of the data packets
coming through the router inspecting information such as the destination and
origination IP address, packet type, port number, and other surface-level information
without opening up the packet to inspect its contents.
—Gateway servers: Firewalls that filter traffic based on the application requested. Proxy
firewalls operate at the application layer to filter incoming traffic between your network
and the traffic source hence, the name “application-level gateway.” These firewalls are
delivered via a cloud-based solution or another proxy device. Rather than letting traffic
connect directly, the proxy firewall first establishes a connection to the source of the
traffic and inspects the incoming data packet.
—Proxy server firewalls: Firewalls that communicate with the Internet on the private
network’s behalf. Proxy firewalls operate at the application layer to filter incoming traffic
between your network and the traffic source—hence, the name “application-level
gateway.” These firewalls are delivered via a cloud-based solution or another proxy
device. Rather than letting traffic connect directly, the proxy firewall first establishes a
connection to the source of the traffic and inspects the incoming data packet.
Characteristics of a firewall
— All traffic from inside to outside and from outside to inside the network must pass
through the firewall
— Only authorized traffic is allowed to pass
— Firewall itself is immune to penetration

ELECTRONIC PAYMENT

Electronic Payment
It is a financial exchange that takes place online between buyers and sellers. The content
of this exchange is usually some form of digital financial instrument (such as encrypted
credit card numbers, electronic cheques or digital cash) that is backed by a bank or an
intermediary, or by a legal tender.

Types of electronic payment channels

1. Credit Card
The most popular form of payment for e-commerce transactions is through credit cards.
It is simple to use; the customer has to just enter their credit card number and date of
expiry in the appropriate area on the seller’s web page. To improve the security system,
increased security measures, such as the use of a card verification number (CVN), have
been introduced to on-line credit card payments. The CVN system helps detect fraud by
comparing the CVN number with the cardholder's information.
Payment using credit card is one of most common mode of electronic payment. Credit
card is small plastic card with a unique number attached with an account. It has also a
magnetic strip embedded in it which is used to read credit card via card readers. When a
customer purchases a product via credit card, credit card issuer bank pays on behalf of
the customer and customer has a certain time period after which he/she can pay the
credit card bill. It is usually credit card monthly payment cycle. Following are the actors
in the credit card system.

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.
Credit Card Payment Process

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

Advantages of credit card:

— You can make a large purchase now and pay it off in smaller chunks.
— Your credit card statement makes budgeting easier.
— It’s easier than carrying around a wad of cash
Disadvantages of credit card:
— Interest rates can make even a small debt seem larger over time.
— Risk of access to personal information by third party.

DEBIT CARD PAYMENT

Debit Card
Debit cards are the second largest e-commerce payment medium in India. Customers
who want to spend online within their financial limits prefer to pay with their Debit
cards. With the debit card, the customer can only pay for purchased goods with the
money that is already there in his/her bank account as opposed to the credit card where
the amounts that the buyer spends are billed to him/her and payments are made at the
end of the billing period.
Debit card payment process:

— Step 1: Bank issues debit card to the customer

— Step 2: The customer pays with debit card: The customer purchases goods/services
from a retailer.
— Step 3: The payment is authenticated: The retailer point-of-sale system captures the
customer’s account information and securely sends it to the acquirer.
— Step 4: The transaction is submitted: The retailer acquirer asks card brand to get an
authorisation from the customer’s issuing bank.
— Step 5: Authorisation is requested: Card brand submits the transaction to the issuer
for authorisation.
— Step 6: Retailer payment: The issuing bank routes the payment to the retailer’s
acquirer who deposits the payment into the retailer’s account

Advantages of debit card:

Ø Debit cards are protected by a four digit PIN that you set yourself. This PIN is needed
to make almost any purchase with your debit card. This gives you a great deal of
protection against theft.
Ø The only thing that you need to have for a debit card is a bank account. Anyone can
open a bank account with a small minimum deposit.

Disadvantages of debit card:

Ø When you have a debit card, fees are likely a part of your life as well. Banks inflict a
wide variety of different fees on debit card holders, which can add up very fast. Some of
these include monthly use charges, major overage fees, and transaction fees or limits.
Ø If someone got a hold of your debit card, they will be able to take money directly
from your bank account. With a credit card, the charges are much easier to dispute, and
they do not interfere with your direct lines of income the way the debit cards do.

Smart Card
It is a plastic card embedded with a microprocessor that has the customer’s personal
information stored in it and can be loaded with funds to make online transactions and
instant payment of bills. The money that is loaded in the smart card reduces as per the
usage by the customer and has to be reloaded from his/her bank account. A smart card,
typically a type of chip card, is a plastic card that contains an embedded computer chip–
either a memory or microprocessor type–that stores and transacts data. This data is
usually associated with either value, information, or both and is stored and processed
within the card's chip. Smart cards can provide identification, authentication, data
storage and application processing.
There are two types of smart cards. They are contact cards like bank cards, membership
cards, loyalty cards, SIM cards, healthcare cards and contactless cards like RF smart card.

NET BANKING

Net banking
This is another popular way of making e-commerce payments. It is a simple way of
paying for online purchases directly from the customer’s bank. It uses a similar method
to the debit card of paying money that is already there in the customer’s bank. Net
banking does not require the user to have a card for payment purposes but the user
needs to register with his/her bank for the net banking facility. While completing the
purchase the customer just needs to put in their net banking id and pin.

Net banking payment process

— Step 1: Making an order with seller
— Step 2: Selecting the option to pay through net banking
— Step 3: Login into the account with username and password
— Step 4: Making the payment and confirming the same
— Step 5: Transfer of funds to the account of seller.

Advantages of net banking:

— An online account is simple to open and easy to operate.
— It's convenient, because you can easily pay your bills and transfer your funds between
accounts from nearly anywhere in the world.

Disadvantages of net banking:

— You cannot have access to online banking if you don’t have an internet connection;
thus, without the availability of internet access, it may not be useful.
— Password security is a must. After receiving your password, change it and memorize
it. Otherwise, your account may be misused.

E-Wallet/ Digital Wallet

E-Wallet is a prepaid account that allows the customer to store multiple credit cards,
debit card and bank account numbers in a secure environment. This eliminates the need
to key in account information every time while making payments. Once the customer
has registered and created E-Wallet profile, he/she can make payments faster.
A digital wallet refers to an electronic device that allows an individual to make electronic
transactions. This can include purchasing items on-line with a computer or using a
smartphone to purchase something at a store. An individual's bank account can also be
linked to the digital wallet. They might also have their driver’s license, health card,
loyalty card(s) and other ID documents stored on the phone.

Digital wallet payment process:

— Step 1: Download the application
— Step 2: Deposit the amount from the bank account
— Step 3: Make an order for products or services with seller
— Step 4: Select the digital wallet and enter the credentials.
— Step 5: Make the payment

Advantages of digital:
Ø Employing the use of digital wallets removes the need for intermediaries, in a variety
of forms. Purchases in-store may no longer require a cashier because the purchasing
process becomes as simple as a tap or scan of a mobile device. Applications like Square
can replace expensive POS (point of sale) systems that will reduce transaction costs for
the business.
Ø Digital wallet applications provide a more convenient transaction processing method
for customers, giving businesses that employ this technology a competitive edge in the
market. It redefines the user experience of paying and incorporates a novelty aspect to
each purchase.

MOBILE PAYMENT

Mobile Payment
One of the latest ways of making online payments are through mobile phones. Instead
of using a credit card or cash, all the customer has to do is send a payment request to
his/her service provider via text message; the customer’s mobile account or credit card
is charged for the purchase. To set up the mobile payment system, the customer just
has to download a software from his/her service provider’s website and then link the
credit card or mobile billing information to the software.

Mobile payment systems

— Mobile applications
— Mobile wallets
— Point of sale payment
— Mobile card reader

E-cash/ digital cash

An e-commerce system that uses e-cash refers to a system in which money is only
exchanged electronically. To use e-cash, link your personal bank account to other payee
accounts or set up an e-cash account using a centralized system, such as PayPal, and
link it to your personal bank account. To fund your e-cash account, you can debit from
your personal bank account or credit card. To make payments using your e-cash
account, you can make a deposit to the other person's e-cash account if you have their
banking information, or request a transfer to their bank account.

Digital Cheque
Electronic checking systems provide a means to send a message to a bank to transfer
funds from the sender's account to another account. The message is first directed to the
intended receiver of the funds who endorses the check and presents it to the bank to
collect the funds.

Payment gateway
A payment gateway is a merchant service provided by an e-commerce application
service provider that authorizes credit card or direct payments processing for e-
businesses, online retailers, bricks and clicks, or traditional brick and mortar
1. RuPay
RuPay is an Indian domestic card scheme conceived and launched by the National
Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). It was created to fulfill the Reserve Bank of India's
desire to have a domestic, open loop, and multilateral system of payments in India.
RuPay is the first-of-its-kind domestic Debit and Credit Card payment network of India,
with wide acceptance at ATMs, POS devices and e-commerce websites across India. It is
a highly secure network that protects against anti-phishing. The name, derived from the
words ‘Rupee and ‘Payment’, emphasises that it is India’s very own initiative for Debit
and Credit Card payments. It is our answer to international payment networks,
expressing pride over our nationality.
RuPay fulfils RBI’s vision of initiating a ‘less cash’ economy. This could be achieved only
by encouraging every Indian bank and financial institution to become tech-savvy and
engage in offering electronic payments.
PCI during its journey for last six years, has made a significant impact on the retail
payment systems in the country. With Immediate Payment Service (IMPS), India has
become the leading country in the world in real time payments in retail sector. National
Financial Switch (NFS) and Cheque Truncation System (CTS) continues to be the flagship
products of NPCI. Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Bharat Interface for Money
(BHIM) has been termed as the revolutionary products in the payment system. Bharat
Bill Payment System (BBPS) has also been launched in pilot mode. The other products in
pipeline include RuPay Credit Card, National Common Mobility Card - Tap & Go and
Electronic Toll Collection.

2. PayPal
PayPal Holdings, Inc. is an American company operating a worldwide online payments
system that supports online money transfers and serves as an electronic alternative to
traditional paper methods like checks and money orders.
PayPal, American e-commerce company formed in March 2000 that specializes
in Internet money transfers. It was heavily used by the Internet auction company eBay,
which owned PayPal from 2002 to 2015. PayPal was the product of a merger between
X.com and Confinity, and it allowed users to make payments on purchased goods or
exchange money between accounts in a secure online transaction.

After watching PayPal become the premier choice of Internet auction shoppers, online
marketplace giant eBay acquired PayPal for $1.5 billion in October 2002. The company
offers users the ability to link their PayPal accounts to their own bank accounts, making
transfers and payments more efficient than money orders or checks.
 UNIT-4

MARKETING TECHNOLOGIES

Marketing Technology: Marketing technology can be defined as the tools and

platforms used by sales and marketing organizations to effectively complete their
duties.
M-commerce (mobile commerce) is the buying and selling of goods and services
through wireless handheld devices such as cellular telephone and personal digital
assistants (PDAs).

Wireless Application Technologies in E- Business

1) SMS (Short Messaging Service): SMS is a technology enables sellers to reach
more customers. SMS provides your brand with a new way of engaging customers. It is
basically a network based service. It does not require internet. It has direct and
immediate impact on customers.
For example, see what truly drives the consumers to action. One text could read: “FLASH
SALE. Just for you, 25% off your purchase before 5 PM.” Another could read, “As a thank
you for being a loyal customer of [brand], we will take 15% off your next purchase”.
2) USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data): USSD is menu driven service
in the mobile devices. In layman’s language, a mobile user types a USSD string i.e
(*888#) and press send to bring up the menu. The user then follows the menu
transmitting the menu responses over the mobile network.
3) Mobile Web: The mobile web refers to browser-based Internet services accessed
from handheld mobile devices, such as smartphones or feature phones, through
a mobile or other wireless network.
4) Mobile Applications: A mobile application, most commonly referred to as an app,
is a type of application software designed to run on a mobile device, such as a
smartphone or tablet computer.
Mobile app marketing is about creating marketing campaigns that communicate
with your users at every stage of their life cycle, from when they first download your
app, to when they become a regular user and brand advocate who makes many in-app
purchases.
5) Analytics: Analytics is the discovery, interpretation, and communication of
meaningful patterns in data generated in marketing products and services. A thorough
marketing analytics program will help you to understand big-picture marketing trends,
determine which programs worked and monitor trends over time, thoroughly
understand the ROI of each program and forecast future results.
6) E-Mail: Messages distributed by electronic means from one computer user to one
or more recipients via a network. The marketer can reach more number of customers in
less time with less cost. E-mail also helps online marketers to deliver the message that
they have intended to send to the large number of customers.
7) Search engine marketing: Search engine marketing, or SEM, is one of the most
effective ways to grow your business in an increasingly competitive marketplace. With
millions of businesses out there all vying for the same eyeballs, it’s never been more
important to advertise online, and search engine marketing is the most effective way to
promote your products and grow your business.
Search engine marketing’s greatest strength is that it offers advertisers the opportunity
to put their ads in front of motivated customers who are ready to buy at the precise
moment they’re ready to make a purchase. No other advertising medium can do this,
which is why search engine marketing is so effective and such an amazingly powerful
way to grow your business.

MOBILE DEVICES USED IN E-BUSINESS

1) Laptop Computers: Laptop computers are personal computers that are easy to
carry and use in various locations. Many laptops on the market are designed to offer
you all the functionality of a desktop computer, which means you can run the same
software and open the same types of files. The laptop has an all-in-one design with
built-in touchpad, keyboard, monitor and speakers. Laptops also offer you the option of
connecting to a larger monitor, regular mouse and other peripherals. This feature means
you can turn a laptop into a desktop computer, but one you can disconnect from the
peripherals and carry with you wherever you go.
2) Tablets: Tablets are also designed to offer portability. However, they provide you
with a computing experience different from laptops with the biggest difference being
that tablets do not have a touchpad or keyboard. Instead, the touch screen offers a
virtual keyboard you use to input text, while your finger replaces the mouse as a pointer.
Tablets are bigger than a smartphone and smaller than a laptop. Like the smartphone,
you can browse the Internet, carry out videoconferences, stay connected through email,
read e-books, play games, watch movies, share photos and listen to music with the
tablet.
3) Smartphones: A smartphone is a powerful mobile phone capable of running
applications in addition to providing with phone service. These devices have most of the
features available on tablets along with cellular Internet connectivity. Cell phone
companies offer data plans that offer you Internet access anywhere with coverage.
4) E-Readers: E-readers, or e-book readers, resemble tablet computers, but that they
are mainly designed for reading digital and downloadable documents. E-readers have
either an LCD or e-ink display. LCD Display: This is the same screen found on laptops
and tablet computers. This type of screen is suitable for viewing books and magazines
with photos because the LCD screen can display colors’ E-Ink Display: E-ink is short for
electronic ink and usually displays in black and white. It is designed to offer you the look
of an actual page in a book. Unlike the LCD display, the e-ink version is not backlit, so
text is readable even outdoors in full sun. E-ink displays offer a reading experience with
less eyestrain.
5) Handheld Gaming Devices: Handheld gaming devices are portable, lightweight
video game consoles that have built-in game controls, screen and speakers. With a
handheld gaming console, you can play your favorite console games wherever you are,
whether on the move or while someone else is watching the TV.

WEB TRANSACTION LOGS

Web Transaction Logs:

A web transaction log is a serial record of all the web transactions and the modifications
that occurred in a database. In the field of databases in computer science, a transaction
log (also transaction journal, database log, binary log or audit trail) is a history of actions
executed by a database management system.

Popular transaction logs are cookies, shopping cart and data warehouse.
1) Cookies: A cookie is a small amount of data generated by a website and saved by
your web browser. Its purpose is to remember information about customer and also
used to store user preferences for a specific site.
Browser cookies come in two different flavors:
Session cookies are temporary and are deleted when the browser is closed. These types
of cookies are often used by e-commerce sites to store items placed in your shopping
cart, and can serve many other purposes as well.
Persistent cookies are designed to store data for an extended period of time. Persistent
cookies are what allow websites to "remember you" for two weeks, one month, or any
other amount of time

2) Shopping cart: A shopping cart is a piece of software that acts as an online store's
catalog and ordering process. The advantages of a shopping cart are convenience, easy
check out, data management, order processing, saving products for future.
3) Data warehouse: A large store of data accumulated from a wide range of sources
within a company and used to guide management decisions. The term data warehouse
was coined by William H. Inmon. He described a data warehouse as being a subject-
oriented, integrated, time-variant and nonvolatile collection of data that supports
management's decision-making process

VIRAL MARKETING

Viral marketing (or viral advertising) is a marketing technique that uses pre-existing
social networking services and other technologies to produce increases in brand
awareness or to achieve other marketing objectives (such as product sales or marketing
buzz) through self-replicating viral processes.

The important tools for viral marketing are

• E-mail

• Newsletters

• Blogging

• Flash games

• Video clips

• Chat rooms

• Social media

Permission Marketing:

Permission marketing is the privilege (not the right) of delivering anticipated, personal
and relevant messages to people who actually want to get them. Permission marketing
is seen as a low-cost and effective way to create a relationship with a potential
customer. It takes away a lot of the overhead costs that competing channels.
Affiliate Marketing:

Affiliate marketing is one of the oldest forms of marketing wherein you refer someone
to any online product and when that person buys the product based on your
recommendation, you receive a commission.
 UNIT-5

CLOUD COMPUTING

An environment created in a user’s machine from an on-line application stored on the

cloud and run through a web browser. In simple Cloud computing is using
the internet to access someone else's software running on someone else's hardware in
someone else's data center

Components of Cloud computing

There are three components of cloud computing
1) Clients: Clients are the devices that the end user interact with cloud. Three types of
clients are mobile (Smart phones, tablets, pagers etc.), thick (Desktop Computers) and
thin (Most Popular) (Laptop Computers). Clients on cloud computing architecture are
said to be the exact same things that are plain, old, everyday local area networks (LANs).
They are, typically, the computers that just sit on your desk. But they might also be
laptops, tablet computers, mobile phones, or PDAs - all big drivers for cloud computing
because of their mobility. Clients are interacting with to manage their information on
the cloud.
2) Datacenter is collection of servers where the application to which you subscribe is
housed. It could be a large room in the basement of your building full of servers on the
other side of the world that you access via the Internet. A growing trend in the IT world
is virtualizing servers. That is, software can be installed allowing multiple instances of
virtual servers to be used. In this way, you can have half a dozen virtual servers running
on one physical server.
3) Distributed Servers is a server placement in a different location. But the servers
don't have to be housed in the same location. Often, servers are in geographically
disparate locations. But to you, the cloud subscribers, these servers act as if they're
humming away right next to each other.
4) Another component of cloud computing is Cloud Applications cloud
computing in terms of software architecture. So that the user does not need to install
and run applications using a computer. Cloud Platform is a service in the form of a
computing platform that contains hardware infrastructure and software. Usually have
certain business applications and use services PaaS as its business application
infrastructure. Cloud Storage involves processes delivering data storage as a service.
Cloud Infrastructure is the delivery of computing infrastructure as a service.

Cloud Service Models:

Application-as-a-Service: Application-as-a-Service (also known as SAAS) is the
complete application built ready for use by the client. This is built to use the internet to
the end users and the end users normally use browsers and the internet to access this
service. This component is the ultimate front-end for end users. Some of the
applications are Salesforce, Gmail, Google calendar and so on.

Infrastructure-as-a-Service: This is called as nearly as possible the taking of all the

hardware, software, servers and networking that is completely virtual. This is where all
the processes and purchases of resources will take place in the cloud. Our processes will
happen but we can't see what's happening at the backend. This avoids the running of
multiple servers, heat, cold, temperature and so on.

Platform-as-a-Service: This is the component where the app is being developed and
the database is being created, implemented, stored and tested. In recent times this
component allows creation of enterprise-level applications easily and is cost-effective.

Advantages of Cloud Computing

1. Efficiency / cost reduction: By using cloud infrastructure, you don't have to spend
huge amounts of money on purchasing and maintain equipment. This drastically
reduces capex costs. You don’t have to invest in hardware, facilities, utilities, or building
out a large data center to grow your business. Cloud also reduces costs related to
downtime. Since downtime is rare in cloud systems, this means you don't have to spend
time and money on fixing potential issues related to downtime.
2. Data security: One of the major concerns of every business, regardless of size and
industry, is the security of its data. Data breaches and other cybercrimes can devastate a
company's revenue, customer loyalty and brand positioning. Cloud offers many
advanced security features that guarantee that data is securely stored and handled.
3. Scalability: Different companies have different IT needs -- a large enterprise of
1000+ employees won't have the same IT requirements as a start-up. Using cloud is a
great solution because it enables enterprise to efficiently -- and quickly -- scale
up/down their IT departments, according to business demands.
Cloud based solutions are ideal for businesses with growing or fluctuating bandwidth
demands. If your business demands increase, you can easily increase your cloud capacity
without having to invest in physical infrastructure. This level of agility can give
businesses using cloud computing a real advantage over competitors.
4. Mobility: Cloud computing allows mobile access to corporate data via smartphones
and devices, which is a great way to ensure that no one is ever left out of the loop. Staff
with busy schedules, or who live a long way away from the corporate office, can use this
feature to keep instantly up-to-date with clients and coworkers.
5. Disaster recovery: Data loss is a major concern for all organizations, along with data
security. Storing your data in the cloud guarantees that data is always available, even if
your equipment like laptops or PCs, is damaged. Cloud-based services provide quick
data recovery for all kinds of emergency scenarios -- from natural disasters to power
outages.

BIG DATA

Big Data refers to our ability to make use of the ever-increasing volumes of data. The
basic idea behind the phrase 'Big Data' is that everything we do is increasingly leaving a
digital trace (or data), which we (and others) can use and analyse.

Characteristics of Big data

1) Variety: Variety of Big Data refers to structured, unstructured, and semi structured
data that is gathered from multiple sources. While in the past, data could only be
collected from spreadsheets and databases, today data comes in an array of forms such
as emails, PDFs, photos, videos, audios, SM posts, and so much more.
2) Velocity: Velocity essentially refers to the speed at which data is being created in real-
time. In a broader prospect, it comprises the rate of change, linking of incoming data
sets at varying speeds, and activity bursts.
3) Volume: We already know that Big Data indicates huge ‘volumes’ of data that is being
generated on a daily basis from various sources like social media platforms, business
processes, machines, networks, human interactions, etc. Such a large amount of data are
stored in data warehouses.
4) Veracity: With many forms of big data quality and accuracy are less controllable (just
think of Twitter posts with hash tags, abbreviations, typos and colloquial speech as well
as the reliability and accuracy of content) but technology now allows us to work with
this type of data
Advantages of Big Data (Features)

• One of the biggest advantages of Big Data is predictive analysis. Big Data
analytics tools can predict outcomes accurately, thereby, allowing businesses and
organizations to make better decisions, while simultaneously optimizing their
operational efficiencies and reducing risks.
• By harnessing data from social media platforms using Big Data analytics tools,
businesses around the world are streamlining their digital marketing strategies to
enhance the overall consumer experience. Big Data provides insights into the
customer pain points and allows companies to improve upon their products and
services.
• Being accurate, Big Data combines relevant data from multiple sources to
produce highly actionable insights. Almost 43% of companies lack the necessary
tools to filter out irrelevant data, which eventually costs them millions of dollars
to hash out useful data from the bulk. Big Data tools can help reduce this, saving
you both time and money.
• Big Data analytics could help companies generate more sales leads which would
naturally mean a boost in revenue. Businesses are using Big Data analytics tools
to understand how well their products/services are doing in the market and how
the customers are responding to them. Thus, the can understand better where to
invest their time and money.
• With Big Data insights, you can always stay a step ahead of your competitors. You
can screen the market to know what kind of promotions and offers your rivals are
providing, and then you can come up with better offers for your customers. Also,
Big Data insights allow you to learn customer behavior to understand the
customer trends and provide a highly ‘personalized’ experience to them.

VIRTUAL REALITY

Virtual Reality refers to a high-end user interface that involves real-time simulation and
interactions through multiple sensorial channels. Virtual Reality means feeling an
imaginary (virtual) world, rather than the real one.
Types of Virtual Reality
1. Non-immersive Virtual Reality: Non-immersive virtual reality refers to a virtual
experience through a computer where you can control some characters or activities
within the software, but the environment is not directly interacting with you.
For example, when you play video games such as World of WarCraft, you can control
characters within the game that have their own animations and attributes.
2. Fully Immersive Virtual Reality: On contrary to non-immersive virtual reality, a fully
immersive virtual technology ensures that you have a realistic experience within the
virtual world. It will be as if you are within the physically present in that virtual world and
everything is happening to you for real.
One example could be a Virtual Shooter gaming zone where you will be equipped with
the gears in a small room and you will be viewing a virtual world through the helmet
where you are facing other shooters trying to kill you.
3. Augmented Reality: Augmented Reality is when a certain entity or device seems to
be present in reality but is actually not. Rather than putting you into a virtual world, a
virtual entity is placed in the real world through any device.
For example, through your mobile screen, you can view your room, and probably place a
cartoon character at the corner.

Application of Virtual Reality

1) Entertainment: The potential of VR in entertainment is clear and huge as the
entertainment industry is a multi-billion dollars and consumers are always interested on
its novelty. The VR video game world was popularized already by the Disney Movie Tron
in 1982.
2) Education: VR offers visualisation of geometric relationships in difficult concepts or
data that are hard to interpret. If the real environment is costly or hazardous to health,
VR is the best choice to understand and learn it. For example, flight simulation or
firefighting, nuclear power plant safety, medical procedures etc are the training in VR
which are useful for education.
3) Health: VR technology can also help improve today’s distributed health care
system, in which doctors train to perform routine medical procedures in remote
communities around the world.
4) Military: The military in the UK and the US have both adopted the use of virtual
reality in their training as it allows them to undertake a huge range of simulations.
E-MARKETING
It is the process of buying and selling through internet. Online marketing is the practice
of leveraging web-based channels to spread a message about a company's brand,
products, or services to its potential customers. The methods and techniques used for
online marketing include email, social media, display advertising, search engine
optimization, and more.

Types of E-Marketing
• Vertical: Unlike horizontal plays, vertical players are specialists. So an online
retailer that only sells baby products is a vertical e-commerce business, so is one that
only sells shoes.
• Horizontal: Those that sell products from a large number of categories. The most
famous horizontal e-commerce business is Amazon.com. It sells books, furniture, food,
grocery, apparel, toys, software, music, gadgets, and a whole lot more.