Net Insecurities Hampering E-Commerce

A while back we commented on Internet users who were severely curtailing, and even halting, their Net usage due to worries about viruses, sypware and phishing scams. Now there's additional evidence that security issues are having a negative impact on e-commerce and other Internet business.

A Forrester Research survey found that 26% of banking customers surveyed would prefer to do their banking in person or via phone than online because of worries about phishing, and 19% don't trust the Internet enough to enroll in online banking programs. Similarly, a Harris Interactive poll found that e-commerce grew by only 1% in 2004, versus nearly 20% in 2003.

Needless to say, these are critical concerns for anyone whose business depends on the Internet. It's also conceivable that these concerns will move from the consumer to the enterprise sector, where response to security threats could well determine the future of e-commerce.

Source: CSO