- E-Commerce -

Review on a local, transactional e-commerce site

2009-07-27T09:29:00.000-07:00

SHOPPY.COM.MY is a guide to Malaysian Online Shops. In colloq, Shoppy.com.my is abounding with shops. The objective of Shoppy.com.my is to provide a reliable and trustworthy platform for online shoppers and web stores to connect with each other.

First of all, I noticed that this e-commerce site has its own logo as shown above. The fundamental of a successful site is the site has its own logo to identify and easily remember by customers. On the other hand, An ‘S’ is in a shopping plastic bag, which clearly signify that “this is an online shop”. Also, logo conveys us that Shoppy.com.my is a web store directory.

Furthermore, Shoppy.com.my contains a few tabs or links to another section in the homepage, such as clothes for kids, baby girl clothing, clothing shopping, diamond jewelry and baby shower. It also provides a search engine that navigates users over the site which squeezes various categories such as computing, health care, pets and the like. Following is the screenshot from the site:

A title “Recently Listed Malaysian Online Shops” gives a reference to the users regard to the latest popular websites visited by users has included Shoppy.com.my. Consumers can identify the latest information in fashion, entertainment, jewelry and etc. Therefore, consumers will be attracted to Shoppy.com.my. Moreover, new product will be announced throughout the site timely. Online Offers, Promotion Codes, Sales and Events also posted in the site.

When the item is being selected or clicked, detail information about the item will be shown without having the information seeking hassle. It provides the important details such as the payment, delivery area, delivery options, product description (features and screenshots). It also shows the preference rate ranking by the customers Yet, we cannot entirely rely on the rate because it is not certified.

http://www.shoppy.com.my/

Electronic Currency

2009-07-18T19:33:00.000-07:00

If this is true that money makes the world go around, does the world spin faster when money can circle the globe in a fraction of a second? “Money” itself a combination of factors, such as coins or paper, negotiable bonds, and now bits of data residing on computer servers or pulses of light pulses through fiber-optic network. Electronic currency (also known as e-money, electronic cash, electronic currency, digital money, digital cash or digital currency) is a script or money which only exchange electronically.

Most money in today’s world is electronic, and tangible cash is becoming less frequent. As a result of the use of internet / online banking, debit cards, online bill payment and internet business, paper money has become a thing of the past. Banks now offer many services to enable customers to transfer funds, contribute to their retirement plans (such as the Canadian Registered Retirement Savings Plan), purchase shares and provide various other services without having to handle physical cash or checks. Customers do not have to wait; this provides a lower-hassle environment. Furthermore, debit cards and online bill payment can immediately transfer funds from the personal account to a business’s account without any actual paper transfer of money. This provides a great convenience to consumers and businesses alike.

Although there are benefits points to digital cash, there are also significant weaknesses. These embrace fraud, failure of technology, as far as possible to track the loss of personal and interpersonal. Indeed, fraud over digital cash has become a pressing issue in recent years. Intrusion to bank accounts and bank records has led to a broad invasion of privacy and has promoted the identity theft. Moreover, there is also an imperative issue regarding the technology involved in digital cash. Power failures, loss of records and undependable software often cause a major setback in promoting the technology. Privacy issues have also been raised; there is a fear that the use of debit cards and the others electronic currency will lead to the creation by the banking industry of a global tracking system. IT researchers are working on anonymous electronic currency to try to address this privacy question.
Whilst there are continued resistances, many consumers enjoy the benefits of electronic currency. Yet, fraud, hacker, privacy and the like problem need to be resolved and provided the additional safety precautions.

http://www.kentlaw.edu/honorsscholars/2002students/jhsp.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_currency
http://www.solarnavigator.net/venture_capital/electronic_money_transfers.htm
http://www.chicagofed.org/publications/electronicmoney/electronicmoney.pdf

The application of third party certification programme in Malaysia

2009-07-18T19:25:00.000-07:00

Nowadays, trust is considered the primary concern if entering into the new internet economy. The ever-changing paradigm of e-commerce requires a well-mandated security infrastructure. Certificate authority (CA) is an authority in a network that issues and manages security credentials and public keys for message encryption. If the registration authority verified the information, which provided by the requestors, CA can then issue a digital certificate.

In Malaysia, any organization that wants to communicate securely with their customers should subscribe to the DIGISIGN™ SERVER ID Enrich, especially if the organizations require their customer to submit confidential information (such as credit card number, identity card information and the like) online. Moreover, the Server ID Enrich helps to protect the customers against falling victim to impostor web sites as it provides proper mean to verify the legitimate owner. Example of web operations that could benefit from the use of the digital certificate includes online financial institutions, banks, government web sites, online merchants, and universities or colleges. The features are as follow:

1. Strong Encryption: Digicert’s Server certificate ensures that the organization’s Web site visitors will receive powerful 128 bit up to 256 bit encryption. Protect information submitted online via SSL. Any confidential Information submitted between the organization and their customers (e.g. Credit Card Number) will be encrypted thus keeping them private.

2. Web Site Authenticity: It provides the ultimate in credibility for the online business. DIGICERT The most reliable infrastructure and stringent authentication practices back each DIGISIGN™ SERVER ID Enrich issued by DIGICERT.

3. DIGICERT Reliance Protection Plan: For your peace of mind, DIGICERT protects users against economic loss resulting from wrongful issuance of DIGISIGN™ SERVER ID Enrich.

4. Quick registration and Delivery: DIGICERT will be able to issue your DIGISIGN™ SERVER ID Enrich in less than 24 hours.

5. Legal Recognition: Digital Certificates issued by DIGICERT is in compliance with the Digital Signature Act 97 and Digital Signature Regulations 98.

The application of third party certification programme has become prevalent although complex. It provides a sound and robust risk management framework which held accountable for controlling and managing e-commerce risks and security posture.

http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid14_gci213831,00.html
http://www.digicert.com.my/expresslink02.htm

Corporate Blogging: A new marketing communication tool for companies

2009-07-17T06:53:00.000-07:00

The Webster's dictionary defines a Web log as "a personal chronological log of thoughts published on a Web page." Blogs are subscribed by millions of users and even companies nowadays are looking beyond to blogging as communication media with stakeholders. It has said to be ‘the revolutionary new way to increase sales, build your brand and get exceptional’ (Wright.J).

The reasons are:

1. It encourages dynamic communication with customers

Interaction with customers can build trust of them towards company. When the company posts its information or shares their knowledge informally, customers will be more attracted to comment or reply to it. Therefore, employees deal with those comments or replies appropriately to those comments or replies will strengthen relationship between company and customers and build a trust in between. Besides that, vibrant interaction with recent customers can attract prospective customers. As blogs is conducted informally, bloggers (prospective customers) interested in the discussion topic are tend to attracted to actively participate and view company’s blogs pages. Hence, they are exposed to more company’s information if visit company’s blogs regularly.

2. Allows real-time communication with customers.

Blogs post can be reaching to each others right after it is published depends only on participants decide whether to delay responses. Company can get and give responses to and from customers instantaneously. These have increased the communication volume and thus mutual mindset could be created throughout the conversations. If response via e-mail, the process takes more steps and contain time lag which will discourage the participation of customers.

3. It offers a more open medium of communication.

A blog is the time of one person, jotting down his or her thoughts. Participants can voice out their thinking about company or their surrounding through blog post. For example if company intends to test the marketability of its new product, introducing through blog post and getting feedback from customers are valuable to determine the performance of the new product in market. Besides that, feedbacks also generate a space of advancement for that particular product or other products of company.

In order to attract participants attention, a blog should be interesting and informative corporate blogs such as Dell, Coca-cola and Nokia.

the pros and cons of corporate blogging
10 ways to boost the value of your blog
survey on trustworthtiness of corporate blog
10 rules for effective corporate blogging

Reference :

Halvorson.C. (2008,october). Minding your biz: should your company have a blog? New Hampshire Business Review. Retrieved July 11, 2009, from ProQuest database.

Mobile Payment Systems in Malaysia: Its potentials and consumers’ adoption strategies

2009-07-09T14:01:00.000-07:00

Mobile payment was first introduced in Malaysia by TeleMoney at the end of year 2001. In February 2005, another mobile payment service company, namely Mobile Money International Sdn.Bhd enters the market. Recently, with collaboration of Nokia, Visa & Maybank, and Malaysia’s Touch ‘n Go card Maxis launched the ‘World's first contactless mobile payment system’. It is as convenience as we never expected where transactions can be done by only key in numbers.

Potential

However, a lately Bank Negara Malaysia’s statistic shows that mobile banking usage is still low as compared to other e-payments (Figure 1). One of the reasons is there are other alternatives available conveniently i.e. ATM and internet banking. ATM machines are available around and can be reached conveniently. ATM also provides MEPS enable withdrawal and transfer between different banks. Internet banking on the other hand provides more services than mobile payment with the same charges such as checking statement promptly after fund transfer and online share application that cannot be apply through mobile payment. Moreover, the promotion on using mobile payment in Malaysia is not ‘hot’ enough to create awareness among Malaysian. In a nutshell, loads of efforts and collaboration between government, banks and merchants will be needed to increase the application of mobile payment among Malaysian due to high competitiveness with various e-payments. If not mobile payment merchant will definitely meet their draw back.

Figure 1 : statistic from Bank Negara Malaysia (source : payment system policy department, BNM)

Adoption strategies

Some of the widely adoption of mobile payment in Malaysia are:

top up - reload airtime such as iTalk, Digi, or Celcom.
pay bills - pays such as utilities bills, PTPTN loan, insurance bill, or Majlis Perbandaran.
remit money overseas - such as to Indonesia, mostly use by foreign workers.
pay friends - pay to friend through key-in their mobile phone number or bank transfer.
pay merchants - applied when buying from stores.

Illustrations...

A customer using mobile to purchase a meal from a fast food outlet.

using Nokia 6212 for touch 'n go

References:

http://mis-asia.com/news/articles/worlds-first-contactless-mobile-payment-system-launches-in-malaysia
http://www.fsa.go.jp/frtc/kenkyu/event/20090331/04-4.pdf
http://www.mobile-money.com/aboutus.htm
http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/communications/0,39044192,39001884,00.htm

A review on a post on Legal from My E-Commerce blog

2009-07-08T06:55:00.000-07:00

Beside computer, mobile devices such as mobile phone, has become another new mean for cyber crime. In June 2007, Digi subscribers had been attacked by SMS scam. Subscribers had been informed that their simcard has won RM 15,000 in cash and reload credit of RM 250 from a Digi contest. They were required to call a foreign 15 digits phone number in order to get their prizes. In the following month, Maxis subscribers had experienced the similar SMS scam. After the incident, both companies had alerted their subscribers to ignore these SMS and urged the public not to fall to these prey.

One year later, fake SMS messages purported from Shell Malaysia were being circulated around the country. In July 2008, Shell had reminded the public to ignore the messages as the company did not use text messages to communicate with its contest winners. This has proven that the situation has not been improved even after 1 year SMS spam had been discovered.

Recently, it has reported that money in Maybank account was transferred without the knowledge of the account holders who don’t even apply for PIN for transferring of fund via Internet banking facility. It was found that the account holders had disclosed their account information to others upon receiving a message stating that their simcards won a lucky draw worth RM15, 000 from Power Root Sdn Bhd and required receivers to dial a phone number.

Today, similar SMS spam still circulates around our country. As we can see that what the companies do are announcing and alerting the public of the threat instead of any action taken. Nevertheless, this is not adequate. New policies and strategies should be implemented to prevent this type of threat from occurring again as prevention is better than cure.

References:

http://blog.thestar.com.my/permalink.asp?id=24587

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/7/14/nation/18303050&sec=nation

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/7/25/nation/21916194&sec=nation

Phishing: Examples and its prevention methods

2009-07-07T17:56:00.000-07:00

What is phishing?

Generally, phishing is a criminally fraudulent process illegally acquires sensitive information. Phishers try to lure unsuspecting users to fake websites hoping that their victims would try to supply login information, credit card details or social security numbers while trying to use the service.

Examples in Malaysia

Figure 1: Citibank Phishing scam

Figure 2: HSBC Phishing scam

Figure 3: Maybank2u.com scam in hotmail account

Figure 4: Another Maybank2u.com scam

From the examples, receivers are asked to click the link provided to update their data. Once the link is click, users' login name and password is divulged and embezzled by phisher.

Prevention method

Be suspicious of any email with urgent requests for personal financial information - if users are unsure if that is a valid message, always confirmed with the bank and check whether it’s a scam or not.

Avoid filling out forms in email messages that ask for personal financial information - bankers will not require their client to update personal information through e-mail.

Don't use the links in an email, instant message, or chat to get to any web page - for e-mail link, before click on the link provided mouse over or view source the link and the real link will be revealed (for example in Figure 3 at above).When you reach the website thru the link in the email, try to login using wrong login name and password, if it’s logged in then you know it’s a phishing scam, if not then it should be safe.

Get in the habit of looking at the address line - remember your bank's URL or bookmark it. if the URL from e-mail message is different, it might be a phishing message.

Always ensure that the website is secured when submitting credit card or other sensitive information via Web browser - secured website will shown with a yellow lock near the bottom screen on a secure site. By double-clicking the lock, security certificate of the site will be displayed.

References :

http://blog.saimatkong.com/index.php/2008/08/01/maybank2ucom-email-phishing-scam/
http://ezinearticles.com/?Phishing-Techniques&id=1818216
http://www.antiphishing.org/consumer_recs.html
http://www.ghacks.net/2007/02/16/introduction-to-new-phishing-techniques/
http://www.mycert.org.my/en/services/advisories/mycert/2004/main/detail/464/index.html
http://www.mycert.org.my/en/services/advisories/mycert/2004/main/detail/465/index.html

An example of an E-commerce failure and its causes

2009-07-06T15:04:00.000-07:00

An example of an E-commerce failure and its causes Boo.com

E-commerce has gradually become part of our lives. However, in its path of development has a lot of failure experience from earlier period companies who adopted it. Now, I will interpret one of the examples of failure of e-commerce. That is Boo.com, which is a clothing e-retailer, was launched 3rd November 1999. Boo was the first company to launch e-commerce across in multiple countries from the day the company was formed. Indeed, the company will face a lot of challenges that cannot be foreseen. Besides financial situation, marketing and management strategies also contribute to its downfall.

DOWNFALL CAUSES:

1) Poor Web Design and Usability: Customers prefer simple and quick to use in browsing the dot.com. The “three-click rule” is a site design, which simply means that users should not need to click more than 3 times to find the information they seek. Customers sick of the overuse of technology.

2) Bad Planning: Bad planning in several areas of Boo.com’s strategy was the key of its downfall. Its Swedish founders were too ambitious in their business plan and wanted to dominate the market immediately. Indeed, the founders did not start with small business and then expanding slowly. Lack of “bricks and mortar” retailing experience lead to the failure of Boo.com.

3) Lack of Sound Financial Management: The cost Boo.com spent out of control due to lack of sound financial management. . The ‘Financial Times’ describes the pattern of spending from technology costs, through to employment benefits. They believe the biggest cost was the construction of Boo’s technology platform, which involved hefty programming for multi-currency sales and product delivery.

To be a successful e-commerce, the website needs to give the users pleasant experience, easy and convenient to purchase and speed of process. If fulfill the above criteria, you can won the customers’ heart.

References:

http://www.tnl.net/who/bibliography/what_I_learned_at_boo.com/

http://www.edigitalretail.com/Most_Famous_Dotcom_Failure.pdf

Credit Card Debts: Causes and Prevention

2009-07-05T05:23:00.000-07:00

I believe that everyone is familiar with credit card. It allows consumers to repeatedly borrow money or purchase products and services on credit. Normally, it is issued by banks, savings and loans, retail stores and other businesses. Credit cards suppose to make our life easier, but it gives rise to negative consequences in our society.

Today, credit card debt has become the main contributor to personal debt and cause for many financial problems. The following are some of the common causes of credit card debts.

Maintaining expenses on a reduced income ~ Excessive spending is one of the common causes of credit card debt. This is especially true if you continue to make charges after experiencing a reduction in your monthly income.
Poor money management ~ Spending without planning is likely to result in excessive expenses and inability to pay the monthly credit card bills. Higher interest rates will be charged on late payment and further increase your debts.
Not savings or saving too little ~ Those who are contributing very little or no funds to savings, are likely reach for their credit cards to cover any unexpected or emergency expenses.
Overspending ~ People often spend too much on things that they may not really need. As we live in a consumer culture, with glittery advertisements beckoning us to buy, around every corner, sometimes, we may use credit cards beyond our means.
Banking on windfall ~ Spending tomorrow’s money today is very tempting. Relying on credit cards to meet your monthly purchases will lead you down into credit card debt at the end.

Nevertheless, prevent is definitely better than cure. Here are some useful tips to prevent credit card debts.

Manage Your Finance ~ Plan for your money by listing out all income and expenses on a monthly basis. It is important to know exactly where all of your funds are going. With a great management plan, you won't need to pull out your credit card from your wallet.
Choose Credit Card Wisely ~ Be cautious when choosing credit card. Try to find the credit card offers the lowest interest rate by reviewing and comparing various offers in the market.
Control Spending ~ Be extremely careful with your spending once you get the credit card. Consider whether you can afford the amount credited at the end of the month each time you use credit card. Set a credit limit as low as possible but sufficient to meet your daily needs.
Always Pay on Time ~ Paying on time is one of the best solution to shun away from debt. This can restrict debt from being grow into a huge amount that contributes to financial problem.
View Credit Card the Same as with Cash ~ Keep an equal perspective regarding credit card and cash. This helps you to be more aware and keen on spending too much.

Be a wise consumer and use your credit cards cautiously and don’t let credit cards control you.

References:

http://www.cardratings.com/howtoavoidcreditcarddebt.html
http://www.3debtconsolidation.com/creditcardmistakes.html
http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/debt/debt_manage_2004/top-10-causes.asp
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/tips-on-debt-prevention-and-management.html
http://www.stop-credit-card-debt.com/2008/07/24/tips-on-credit-card-debt-prevention/
http://learnfobia.com/category-Business-62/tutorial-Manage-and-Eliminate-your-Credit-Card-Debt-1989.html

The threat of online security: How safe is our data?

2009-07-02T22:33:00.000-07:00

Internet security is one of the largest challenges faced by most of the companies today. As a business becomes increasingly reliant on data on its systems, it explores further to online security threats such as phishing, Denial-of-service attack, virus, worm and Trojan horse.

According to 2009 Security Threat Report, one new infected web page is discovered every 4.5 seconds. A recent research also shows an increase in SQL injection attacks in 2008, specifically relating to financial services and the online retail industry. It seems that our data is highly explores to online risks. Nowadays, people become increasingly concern about the confidentiality and reliability of their data online.

Various software and systems have been adopted by companies in order to secure consumers’ privacy and build trust among their customers. Let’s us see how companies secure their consumers’ privacy.

Physically Secure Server Location - A major part of data security is physical security of servers and data, with secure access procedures to ensure compliance. This means that only authorized personal can access the servers that store his or her da
Network Security - The entire online service including consumers’ data is protected by the latest firewall protection, intrusion detection systems, and proprietary security products across all segments of our network. If working with third party service providers, the company should constantly test the network for security breaches.
Data Backup - All customer data is continually backed up to local disk as the first level of data protection and every night to an offsite location as part of Disaster Recovery program. This ensures that consumers’ data is safe and their information can be quickly restored in case of a catastrophe.
Application Access - Companies protect customer data by ensuring that only authorized users can access it using their username and password. Account Administrators can assign security rules that define which users in their company or partners have access to the data based on user's roles.
Data Encryption - All data is encrypted in transfer and all access to the service is governed by strict password security policies. All passwords are stored in MD5 hash format, which means they can not be reverse d to the original password and are not readable.
Monitoring and logging - Companies’ service should be continually monitored for security violations attempts and their team receives immediate notification on such violations. Some companies also implement various third party scanning technologies to monitor the service against existing and new threats.

These are common practices that implemented by most companies in order to keep our data safe. Nevertheless, every company may have their own security systems and there is no guarantee that our data is totally free from online threats.

References:

http://www.samanage.com/products/security.html

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/top_online_security_threats_for_2009.php

http://www.winweb.com/online-office-saas-software-as-a-service-benefits/online-office-data-communication-security

- E-government in Malaysia:Its Implementation So Far and Citizen's Adoption Strategies -

2009-06-28T08:29:00.000-07:00

Overview of E-government in Malaysia

Malaysia is an advanced country in its transition to e-government, taking 15th place in the“E Government Ranking 2007”issued by Waseda University.

The portal site for the national government and residents, “myGovernment” (Malaysian Government Public Service Portal), was launched in 2005. This site aims at advancing the online services utilizing the Internet as well as integrating the online services that were offered independently by each government office in the past, into one portal site. Users can acquire an ID by registering and then they have the option to customize a page called “myHome”. Also, at the “Messaging Center”, they can go through procedures with government offices or agencies and exchange e-mail on the portal site. At the “Voting Center”, they can reply to various questionnaires and view the results. E-transaction allows users to search for online services and necessary documents, and also to use the “eDocument Center” which offers a storage service for saving various documents such as those that have been downloaded.

Implementation of E-commerce in Malaysia

The Malaysian Administrative Modernization and Management Planning Unit (MAMPU) is in charge of promoting e-government in Malaysia, and is tackling numerous projects such as the following:

Project Monitoring System (SPP II) - It focuses on the importance of project monitoring to ensure projects are completed as scheduled within the allocated budget and meeting their objectives and evaluation. Its objective is to support and monitor the entire life cycle of Malaysia’s five-year development programmes.
Human Resource Management Information System (HRMIS) - It help to standardize human resource processes for federal, state, statutory body and local authority services and provide transactional function such as leave application, loan processing, competency management, recruitment and selection of employees.
Generic Office Environment (GOE) - It's a powerful document and office management solution that enables users to effectively and efficiently manage their office environment. It is fully web-based and has been customized based on local developed package.
Electronic Procurement (EP) - E-procurement is a way of using the Internet to make it easier, faster, and less expensive for businesses to purchase the goods and services they require in order to streamline the purchasing process and therefore, businesses can focus more management time on earning revenue and serving customers.
Electronic Services (E-Services) - It allows Malaysian to engage in transaction and utility payment such as telephone and electricity bill, police summons, Road and Transport Department ( RTD ) services via multi channel service delivery such as the internet and kiosk machines.
Electronic Labour Exchange (ELX) - It matches jobs to people and people to jobs.
E-Syariah - E-syariah is the 7th project under the Electronic Government flagship application of the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC). It's a case management system that integrates the processes related to management of cases for the Syariah Courts to improve the quality services of the Syariah Courts.

The Citizen's Adoption Strategies

Citizens are expecting and demanding the governmental services with a high degree of quality, quantity, and availability in a 24-hour currently. Therefore, governments all over the world are developing information systems and electronic services that have the capacity to meet the citizen’s needs and demands. The ease of use, compatibility, and trustworthiness are significant factors that affecting the citizens’ intention to use the e-services.

The government should also concern with the accuracy, relevancy and completeness information that provided to the citizens as the successful to implement the E-Government in Malaysia is a significant way to determine the Malaysia’s progress towards the vision 2020.

With the adoption strategies of e-government in Malaysia, it helps to improve the legislation on personal data protection, privacy, and security and thus, the citizen’s private information has been protected. At the same time, it can help to provide e-citizen education, skills and training to every citizen are ready and able to adopt online government services.

Reference Links:

http://www1.american.edu/initeb/ym6974a/egovernment.htm

http://www.dosite.go.jp/e/differ/elec_gov/MyGovernment.html

http://www.mscmalaysia.my/topic/12073046901815

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/5/14/nation/3888766&sec=nation

- The Application of Pre-paid Cash Card for Consumers -

2009-06-26T22:18:00.001-07:00

What Exactly Is A Prepaid Cash Card?

Prepaid cash cards look like credit and debit cards and they offer the same ability to purchase products and services but with a crucial difference – you can only spend the balance that has been preloaded onto the card. This means there is no risk of running into debt as it has no credit or overdraft facility.

How A Prepaid Cash Card Works?

You will be given a Pin number when you purchase a prepaid cash card, and once money has been credited, it can be used in the same way as a debit or credit card. For examples, online or telephone purchases. Money can be reloaded onto a prepaid card by cash at a bank, Post Office, or via a bank transfer.

Who Needs A Prepaid Cash Card?

For those who lack the discipline to manage their money, prepaid cash cards can be a lifesaver in that they don’t let a user spend more than he or she has. It is a great idea to get a prepaid cash card if you have a poor or no credit history whatsoever, and have a trouble to get approved credit cards.

What Are the Reasons to Apply a Prepaid Cash Card?

The following are the advantages and benefits if you have a prepaid cash card on hand:

No credit checks, which means you can get a card without worrying about your credit history. All prepaid card providers will carry out an identity check to confirm you are who you say you are.
To budget for yourself or help to manage your children's spending. Like a credit card, you get a full breakdown of spending on the card so you can see what has been purchased, who from and when.Thus, you will improve your credit rating without running the risk of acquiring any debt.
With a prepaid card, there is no chance of spending too much as you are limited to the amount you put on your card.
Prepaid cash cards are a good option if you are going overseas. They are popular with students heading off on gap years and children who go abroad on school trips as parents can reload them conveniently and efficiently. In addtion, prepaid cash cards offer a good alternative to travellers' cheques as they are safe and you will probably be offered a better rate of exchange as you spend.

Should You Get a Prepaid Cash Card Now?

Prepaid cash cards provide a great answer to problems dealing with bad credit, no credit and uncontrollable spending. By owning and using a prepaid credit card, a consumer can easily establish credit, build up or improve a credit rating and avoid falling into debt at the same time.

If you have decided to apply for a prepaid cash card, u may click the following link to search for further information: http://www.consumercreditcardguide.com/prepaid.php

No matter what you decide, practice smart spending and saving habits. Calculate your month-to-month expenses and plan for a small allowance for personal spending. Open up a savings account and cancel off any extra expenses that you have. Use your prepaid credit card as a stepping stone to better credit and more responsible financial behavior.

Reference Links:

http://www.moneysupermarket.com/c/prepaid-cards/guide/2

http://www.frankfordfinancial.com/prepaid-credit-card/prepaid-creditcard.htm

http://washingtonindependent.com/35944/prepaid-cash-cards-are-a-pricey-way-to-swipe

- How to Safeguard Our Personal and Financial Data ? -

2009-06-26T10:45:00.000-07:00

Web-based services, including social networks such as MySpace and Facebook, are becoming prime targets for hackers to seek your personal information. It's nearly enough to make you long for the days of typo-ridden e-mails pretending to come from your bank.

If you use your computer to manage your personal finances (Eg. banking, taxes, online bill payment, etc), store sensitive personal data, or perform work-related activities away from the office, computer hackers are employing increasingly sophisticated methods to pry that information loose. However, you can take the following steps to protect yourself:

Use and maintain anti-virus software and a firewall -- To protect yourself against viruses and Trojan horses that may steal or modify the data on your own computer and leave you vulnerable

Regularly scan your computer for spyware -- Use a legitimate anti-spyware program to scan your computer and remove any of spyware or adware hidden in software programs, which may affect the performance of your computer and give attackers access to your data.
Keep software up to date -- Upgrade your software programs to the most current version and turn on the Windows' automatic update function to get Microsoft's regular security patches. (Eg. Internet Explorer 8)

Use passwords and encrypt sensitive files -- By encrypting files with passphrases, you ensure that unauthorized people can't view data even if they can physically access it.

Avoid unused software programs -- If you have programs on your computer that you do not use, consider uninstalling them. In addition to consuming system resources, these programs may contain vulnerabilities that, if not patched, may allow an attacker to access your computer.
Dispose of sensitive information properly -- To ensure that an attacker cannot access those sensitive files, make sure that you adequately erase them and avoid to give away any valuable or sensitive personal information on your MySpace or Facebook profile, or within messages to other members of the network.

7. Pay attention to the messages from Windows -- The messages that pop up on your screen, especially in the new Vista operating system are often containing helpful security information.

8. Consider creating separate user accounts -- If there are other people using your computer, you can create a different user account for each user, and you can set the amount of access and privileges for each account in order to avoid someone else may accidentally access, modify, or delete your files.

9. Evaluate your software's settings --The default settings of most software enable all available functionality. However, attackers may be able to take advantage of this functionality to access your computer. It is especially important to check the settings for software that connects to the internet (Eg. browsers, email clients, etc) and try to apply the highest level of security available.

References Links:

An example of e-commerce success and its causes

2009-06-25T20:54:00.000-07:00

Today, Dell is one of the successful e-commerce companies. Dell is also considered as a market leader that gains competitive advantage with its effective e-commerce strategies.

Dell was the first company that used the direct marketing business model to sell PC directly to its customers. The selling of products directly through the internet without an intermediate is potentially cost saving. Furthermore, this direct model enables Dell to develop a thorough understanding of customer expectations which strengthens customer relationships and increases customer satisfaction and loyalty. It is undeniable that the direct-to-customer business model has contributed as the key success factor for Dell. Currently, this model has been operating in 13 regions such as Australia, Brunei, China, New Zealand, India and Malaysia.

In addition, Dell uses personalization and customization tools. For every major corporate customer, Dell creates a special Premier Page, which indicates all products covered under the purchasing contracts with that firm, as well as the special pricing under those contracts. This ensures that employees of that firm always get the right price for each purchase.

Moreover, Dell aims to meet exactly the needs of its customers by offering mass customized products. This enables Dell to know exactly what customers want and produces the products without experiencing wasteful resources in the production. Dell has integrated its e-commerce Web site with all back-office systems. When a customer orders a custom-configured PC, the integrated computer system will automatically transfer that information to the production system according to specifications. This further improves customer services.

As technology continues to develop and evolve, Dell has announced that it will utilize the simulation capabilities of Future Facilities’ 6SigmaDC as part of its data center consulting practice.

References:

A review on Real-World Case: Google is changing everything!

2009-06-22T05:38:00.000-07:00

Initially, Google is known for its search engine and its related advertising tools. These days, it has utilized technology by delivering innovation in its system.

A quick look on Google’s activities

Google’s inventions enable information across the world accessible and organize. One of it is reinvention of spreadsheet as a Web-based application. Google Spreadsheets can be viewed by 10 users at once make it simple for users to enter and shares data. If there are any changes made by users, it will be saved promptly in Google’s computer servers. It is useful for small work teams in social situations or small businesses where can import or export data from Excel’s .xls format or open Comma Separated Value (.csv) format. In a nutshell, Google Spreadsheets have similar function with Microsoft Excel such as sort data and common spreadsheet formulas but it overtakes Excel for concurrently view by several users.

Next is Enterprise Search. It is a system that can be adapt to company’s intranet or website. It identifies and enables specific content across the enterprise to be indexed, searched, and displayed to authorized users. Enterprise Search is a sophisticated search engine that sneaks into database of company and index their content. Varieties of data are sort into different section to lighten analysis. As well, it can also be enhanced by integrate with other applications such as Cognos Go! Users can find further analyzed information and business events they craved for with ease by a simple keyword.

New Release!!

In addition, Google’s latest invention will be release on later year 2009, Google Wave! Google Wave a new tool for communication and collaboration on the web. With ‘wave’ participants can communicate, share and work together lively with any types of document such as video, maps and others besides text. It contains a playback mode enable rewind to previous conversations.

Some of the other Google’s applications are:

Picasa's logo & screen shot

Picasa - mainly for edit and organize photograph

G.Maps - search for maps of locations

G.Earth - view satellite imagery, maps, terrain, 3Dbuildings

G.Talk - chat online and internet call Trait leave voice mail

G.Chrome - new window browser

Trait !! enable private browsing

Adapt and adopted from:

Turban, E., King, D., McKay, J., Marshall, P., Lee, J., & Viehland, D. (2008). Electronic Commerce: A Managerial Perspective 2008 (International Edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson-Education International.

References :
http://earth.google.com/
http://picasa.google.com/
http://wave.google.com/
http://www.google.com/talk/
http://www.google.com/chrome

- The History & Evolution of E-commerce -

2009-06-20T12:55:00.000-07:00

The History of E-commerce

History of e-commerce may date back to the invention of a very old idea of “selling and buying” through the Internet. E-commerce became achievable in 1991 when the Internet was opened to commercial use. Since that date thousands of businesses have taken up residence at web sites.

At the beginning, e-commerce is mainly facilitated by technologies such as Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT), which gave an opportunity for users to exchange business information and do electronic transactions. Both technologies were introduced way back in the late 1970s and a lot has been changed during these four decades. In 1980s, the growing popularity of credit card, automated teller machines and telephonic banking had added one more success-story to the E-Commerce.

The Internet began to advance in popularity among the general public in 1994, but it took approximately 4 years to develop the security protocols such as HTTP and DSL, which allowed rapid access and a persistent connection to the Internet. In 2000, a great number of business companies in the United States and Western Europe represented their services in the World Wide Web. At this time, the definition of the e-commerce was changed. People defined the e-commerce as the process of purchasing of available goods and services over the Internet using secure connections and electronic payment services.

Although the dot-com collapse in 2000 led to an unfortunate results and many of e-commerce companies closed down, the “brick and mortar” retailers recognized the advantages of e-commerce and began to add more capabilities to their web sites.

Nowadays, the 5 largest and most famous worldwide Internet retailers are Amazon, Dell, Staples, Office Depot and Hewlett Packard. According to statistics, the most popular categories of products sold in the World Wide Web are music, books, computers, office supplies and other consumer electronics.

History of ecommerce is a history of a new, virtual world that is evolving according to the customers’ needs. It is a world, which we are all building together brick by brick, laying a secure foundation for the future generations.

The Evolution of E-Commerce

Year
Event
1984
EDI, or electronic data interchange, was standardized through ASC X12. This guaranteed that companies would be able to complete transactions with one another reliably.

1992
Compuserve offers online retail products to its customers. This gives people the first chance to buy things off their computer.

1994
Netscape arrived. Providing users a simple browser to surf the Internet and a safe online transaction technology called Secure Sockets Layer.

1995
Two of the biggest names in e-commerce are launched:Amazon.com and eBay.com.

1998
DSL, or Digital Subscriber Line, provides fast, always-on Internet service to subscribers across California. This prompts people to spend more time, and money, online.

1999
Retail spending over the Internet reaches $20 billion, according to Business.com.

2000
The U.S government extended the moratorium on Internet taxes until at least 2005.

Reference Links:

Yuhooo...

2009-06-17T03:42:00.000-07:00

Hey Hey Hey...
Hello...Everybody I am Hwee Ming. This is my first times to write the blog oh. Erm...create this blog I think that all my fellow friends could 'touch' my heart. Hahahaha...By the way, disclose something on my mind is quite embarrassment. Consequently, do not jeer at me.

I am undertaking the Bachelor of Commerce (HONS) Accounting at UTAR currently. Actually, Bachelor of Commerce (HONS) Accounting at UTAR is not my ambition. Business is competitive, busy and stressful. I SICK OF THESE... Honestly, babysitter is my primary role. I love baby. But reality is cruel ...T_T

OK...about my hobbies. I think mostly same with others people. I enjoy playing computer games, watching the movie, singing Karaoke and shopping with my best friends.Wakaka...admirably life...
Besides the amusement, I also possess the quality side. Heyheyhey...I love reading some novels and magazines to enhance my inner beauty and knowledge. Anyway... I love reading. Some more, I am going to hike with my neighbour at the last semester break. It is a better recreation for me... a couch potato

Top 5 websites, I prefer:
http://www.tieba.baidu.com/ A website provide me the novel for recreation
http://www.google.com.my/ A search engine provide me the information to complete the assignment
http://www.youtube.com/ I use this website to watch the movie and drama during the leisure time.
http://www.ptt.cc/ A Taiwan website which provide miscellaneous information regard to the movie, beauty salon, food and etc...
keepvid.com A website which can download the video posted on the

The advance of technology makes the life easily. We can obtain the up to date information via internet. Even in the home we also can possess the whole world. hahaha...

Hello *

2009-06-12T20:54:00.000-07:00

Hello. I am Yee Foong, from Kuala Lumpur. My family and I have moved to Kajang, Selangor when I was in secondary school. I'm 20 years old and going to celebrate my 21st birthday 2 months later. Currently, I am undertaking an accounting course in UTAR and going to graduate soon.

I would prefer indoor activities such as reading, drawing as well as watching television. I enjoy reading books, magazines and novels as it can enhance my knowledge and improve my writing skill. Besides, I love drawing especially sketching because it doesn't need to be painted. Since I always destroy my drawings with colours, I guess I don't have talent in art. I also enjoy watching dramas and other programmes during my leisure time.

It is undeniable that Internet has become an importance tool for searching information, communicating and sharing. Top 5 websites I visited the most are

http://www.hotmail.com - This website offers mail box that free of charge and allows me to sent and receive email from others.
http://www.google.com - It is a useful search machine that assists me in searching information and articles.
http://www.friendster.com - This website enables me to keep in touch with my friends and keep me update to their latest news.
http://www.chinapress.com.my - This website provides the latest news around the world and information relating to our daily life.
http://www.my.com.my - It allows me listen to myfm through Internet. Sometimes, it enables me to view the condition in the broadcast station. It also provide popular music and songs. Listening music and songs can relax as well as release stress and pressure.

Internet activities that I engage frequently include checking mail, searching information using various search machines, chatting with friends through MSN, reading online newspaper and journals and playing games online.

The evolution of technology has made our life easier and more convenient. Therefore, I would like to share some latest ideas, developments and issues related to e-commerce in the coming period.

who m i??

2009-06-12T05:53:00.000-07:00

helo! i am eeh khyun.

Undertaking Bachelor of Commerce (HONS) Accounting in UTAR recently. I am a STPM graduated student, never plan and think to study in a private univesity, but suddenly i 'pop-up' in UTAR. Without realised i has lived with this university for 2yrs!

I come from Labuan F.T(Federal Territory). Besides surrounding by ocean, it also known for duty free and offshore financial services. Because of duty free, everyday after working hour groups of men will sitting together have their 'tiger' and 'carlsberg' , some of them even have their 'dunhill' too. This is LABUAN. But people sleep quite early,mostly before 11pm and wake up before 8am. It is totally different from KL.

About hobbies... i like to do some outdoor activities such as cycling and walking around to investigate what environment i'm living in. Mayb because live in "kampung" bring up the habit like to walk around to meet some trees, chickens, ducks&dogs..but in KL,can't meet them easily... Of course my hobbie include watching movies! For me, watching english movies can help me improve my english besides have fun.

while serving net, i like to 'go'

http://thestar.com.my getting up-to-date especially business section coz that is source of $$$ !!
http://hotmail.com checking mail daily look out for useful msg and assignment information from group members. Mailbox is really a cost effective way to get&give information.
www.rdasia.com provide lots of articles in every field such as foods, health&technology for general knowledge. But, to view full article must register as member.
www.google.com it is a very useful search engine to solve any curiousity and wallpapers.
www.yahoo.com also to check mail from friends and search information.

with all these websites makes our live easier and save $$$

because of not addicted to serving net, my internet activities are simple checking mail, read online newspaper and search information.

Erm..Blogging~

2009-06-11T10:03:00.000-07:00

Acuatlly, I'm a blogger since I've written blogs in msn spaces. However, it doesn't mean that I'm a professional in blogging. This is my first time to write blog by using Blogspot, and therefore, kinda of strange feelings I'm having now. ( = o = )

Well.. Let's start the blogging now! First, I think I should introduce myself to you all first. I'm Jing Ting, 20 and half years old currently. Since I was borned in 15 November, I'm a scorpion baby. Haha. Hmm.. Yes, I think I'm not a baby anymore as I'm going to be an adult soon.

By the way, I'm studying the Bachelor of Commerce (HONS) Accounting at UTAR currently and going to graduate within 1 year. Hmm.. I should admit that I'm afraid of graduating from school since I'm no ideas about my future at all. Just like a sheep, which is getting lost from its master. Confusing and helpless. (T_T)

When I'm free, I prefer to read books or watch dramas by keeping myself away from those pressures and stresses. Somemore, I'm loving to play games too. However, I'm not talent in playing games as I'm always "Game over" one. Listening music is one of my favourites too, I'm always opening my Windows Media Player while I'm around my laptop. Haha. Hmm.. I think "rest" is also including in my hobbies too. Haha. And i will admit that, the meaning of rest is nearly equal to sleep. Just like an idiom, resting is for the rest of the way to be continued. =P

Since internet is playing an important role in our dairy life, I found that it has become a part of my life too. It's nearly I will surf net everyday due to a lot of reasons, such as searching information for assignment, communicating with family and friends through msn and so on. The five website that I've visited frequently are as the following:

http://mail.live.com/ - A website for me to sign up a free e-mail account, sent and check mail everyday.
http://www.facebook.com/ - A website for me to communicate with friends and play the mini games, which are provided by it.
http://www.dygod.com/ - A website that provides a lot of dramas for downloading, such as Hong Kong dramas, American dramas and etc.
http://gougou.mp3.com/ - A website that I can download a lot of new and nice songs.
http://google.com/ - A search engine that provides me the facilities to search for any information to complete my assignment.

According to the website that I've visited frequently, it's not difficult to guess what the internet activities that I'm done the most. =P . Just like chatting with buddies through msn messenger, downloading dramas or songs through internet, searching useful information through search engines, sending and receiving e-mail immediately through the hotmail and shopping through the ebay website. ^=^

Hmm.. It seems that I'm talking a lot about myself already. And it's the time now for you all to leave a comment to us regarding our blogs, we will appreacite any comment from you all. =) . Before I end my chapter, I wish everyone will get A in this E-commerce subject! ^o^