www.sharexxx.net - free books & magazines

Adverse Effects of E-Commerce 37
environments such as e-commerce are good for offering online products and
services, these environments pose a threat to governments. Online environments
are vulnerable to attacks from inside and outside the companies. Many of the recent
virus attacks triggered by hackers targeting specific sites indicate how hackers can
affect businesses. A country where almost all the systems such as electricity, water,
transportation, and businesses are automated becomes a major target for information
warfare.
Many experts fear that abuse of online environments may become a weapon
to overthrow governments. Information warfare is definitely a concern of most
nations as can be seen by the large number of nations researching and developing
offensive information warfare systems. This increased awareness of the potential
damage cyber attacks can inflict has caused most nations to research defensive
information warfare tactics (Sharma & Gupta, 2001).
Abuse of Power
Computer matching is a technique employed to verify personal information by
cross-referencing it with a separate, unrelated database. The dangers of computer
matching include the abuse of power, the existence of outdated data and the
possibility of information leaks. In 1988, the United States Congress passed the
Computer Matching Privacy and Protection Act. The legislation permitted government
agencies to compare information from two or more sources to detect
anomalies. If information stored in different databases varies, people may be denied
certain privileges based on wrong records or outdated data. Some fear that the
results of computer matching are as effective as door-to-door searches and can
indict them for mistakes of others if wrong data is used. It again leads to invasion
of privacy (Shattuck, 1996).
Customers may give false personal information while shopping or surfing on the
net to avoid being profiled by marketing companies. Due to privacy concerns,
people may intentionally provide incorrect information about themselves, creating
problems by having wrong information recorded in some databases. Incorrect
information can create misery when used and exchanged by various agencies with
banks, and health organizations. Incorrect information can cost a job, opportunity
or the denial of a bank loan or mortgage. Data can be misconstrued in a variety of
strange ways. If information is not verified properly, it can lead to drastic results. The
verification of information by cross-referencing can also lead to positive consequences
for both individuals and organizations. Therefore, its negative impact must
be minimized so that individuals and organizations can benefit from its positive
results.
Copyright © 2003, Idea Group Inc. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written
permission of Idea Group Inc. is prohibited.