Navigating the Digital Frontier: A Comprehensive Assessment of E-Business Strategies

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E – Business

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Table of Contents Executive summary ....................................................................................................................................... 4

Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 5

Report Section 1- Cloud computing.............................................................................................................. 6

Report Section 2- E-commerce Presence ...................................................................................................... 8

Report Section 3- E-commerce Security Environment ............................................................................... 10

Report Section 4 – E-commerce Retailing .................................................................................................. 13

Conclusions and Recommendation ............................................................................................................. 15

References ...................................................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Letter of Transmit

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Declaration: I declare that:

This assignment is my work and has never been submitted to any academic institution or copied

from another person’s work only under circumstances where due acknowledgment has been

made in the text. I have done this assignment individually with no collaboration or assistance

from any individual. I hold a copy of this work that I can produce in case the original is

misplaced or damaged.

Signature:

Date:

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Executive summary

Cloud computing is an internet supported activity depending on resource sharing rather than

having to handle applications by many devices. Private cloud authorizes only the users with

authorization, and it gives companies great and direct control of their data. The resources in a

hybrid that are not critical to the development and test workloads can be hosted in the public

cloud owned by a third party. Critical workloads can only be housed in an internal cloud. One

benefit of cloud computing is the low operational costs for IT. The business can rent additional

server space for some time instead of maintaining servers without worrying about the upgrading

of resources. There is also no hardware or software installation and maintenance. Data recovery

is a risk factor associated with cloud computing. Hosting the computing resources and data in the

cloud makes the provider's recovery capabilities a significant aspect of the business recovery

plans. Data security is considered a key benefit that many cloud providers have usually cited as

their marketing efforts taking advantage of the many companies with no capabilities to manage

to secure their data and systems. Transactions with risk scores exceeding certain thresholds that

is defined by the business owner of the fraud expert can automatically be placed into various

categories for further actions. The transaction can be accepted immediately or rejected but can as

well be flagged for a manual evaluation if it is among the two classes

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Introduction

Cloud computing is an internet supported activity depending on resource sharing rather than

having to handle applications by many devices. The cloud can serve many functions over the

web including storage and virtual servers, applications and allowing desktop applications. Online

bookstores have become a first hit in the current century because the books are offered at low

prices than in the physical stores and because there is no significant difference between the

online and the offline purchase. Online book retailer gives a preview that reveals more about the

book than the physical appearance and quick glance of its content. Students, researchers and

creative writers will be among the target audience for the business. Students will range from pre-

school students to university students. The online book retail will accommodate books from the

cheap school to university, making it a universal store (Vacca, 2017).

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Report Section 1- Cloud computing

Cloud computing is an internet supported activity depending on resource sharing rather than

having to handle applications by many devices. Through the use of internet enabled devices,

cloud computing allows the functions of application software. The cloud can serve many

functions over the web including storage and virtual servers, applications and allowing desktop

applications. Through utilizing the advantage of sharing of resources, cloud computing has

enabled consistency and economies of scale. The types of cloud are classified in the contexts of

two models; cloud computing service models and cloud computing deployment models.

Cloud computing deployment models

These represent the specific class of cloud environment and majorly differentiated by

proprietorship, size, and access. Many firms are willing to implement cloud considering it

reduces the expenditure and cut costs. While selecting the deployment that can best fit a

business, it is recommended to know and understand all the four models of cloud computing.

a. Public cloud

A cloud where the services are delivered over the network that has a free usage for the public.

The model is a genuine representation of cloud hosting where the service provider gives their

services and infrastructure to many clients. The public cloud can best be applied to the

businesses that need one to manage the load that is the application that is SaaS-based and also

manages the applications that are consumed by the users. The model is considered economical as

it is associated with reduced capital overheads and also cut operational costs (Kandukuri, Paturi

and Rakshit, 2009).

b. Private cloud

Is also known as an internal cloud and is a platform for cloud computing implemented on a

secured cloud-based environment safeguarded by a firewall controlled by an IT department

belonging to a particular corporate. Private cloud authorizes only the users with authorization,

and it gives companies great and direct control of their data. Defining the composition of a

private cloud is difficult because it has significant differences when classified according to

services regardless of whether the computers are internally and externally they all provide

resources from a pool of private cloud services. The obstacles associated with security can be

evaded in a private cloud, but in the case of a natural disaster, or a case where the data is

internally stolen, the private cloud may be exposed to vulnerabilities.

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c. Hybrid cloud

Is a cloud computing model that is integrated and can be an arrangement of two or more servers

bound together but are still categorized as individual entities. The benefits of the multiple

deployment models can be seen in a hybrid cloud. The model can cross isolation and overcome

the boundaries placed by the provider, and as such, it can only be categorized as public, private

of a community cloud. It allows the users to expand their capacity and capabilities by the

integration, assimilation or customization with another cloud package. In a hybrid cloud model,

the resourced are managed and allocated as in-house or as external providers. It represents an

adaptation in two platforms where the workloads are transferred between the private and public

clouds as per the need and demand. The resources in a hybrid that are not critical to the

development and test workloads can be hosted in the public cloud owned by a third party.

Critical workloads can only be housed in an internal cloud. Businesses focused on security and

demand for their presence can use the hybrid cloud as a business strategy. Companies can use the

model for big data processing. A private cloud can host sales, business, and other data and can as

well start analytical queries regarding public cloud which is effective to meet demand spikes.

d. Community cloud

Is a cloud that its setup is shared between companies belonging to an individual community? It is

a model with a multi-tenant setup shared among different organizations owned by a particular

group that has similar privacy, performance, and securities. The first agenda for these

communities is to achieve their business stated objectives. Community cloud can be managed

internally or via a third party provider. It is a model that best suits companies and firms that work

on joint ventures, tenders, and research that needs a centralized cloud computing capabilities for

managing and implementing similar projects.

Benefits and risks of cloud computing

One of the benefits is low capital costs as companies can give unique services through the use of

large-scale computing resources from cloud service providers. Also, it can remove the IT

capacity to be able to meet the peak and the demands of the fluctuating service while still paying

for the actual capacity. Another benefit is the low operational costs for IT. The business can rent

additional server space for some time instead of maintaining servers without worrying about the

upgrading of resources. There is also no hardware or software installation and maintenance. The

optimized IT infrastructure provides quick access to the required computing services.

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The associated risks with cloud computing include the environmental security where the

concentration of the resources and the cloud users are a security threat. Their size and

significance make the cloud environment a target by the virtual machines, the malware, and other

cloud attacks. There is also data privacy and security issues were hosting of confidential data

with the cloud service providers involves the transfer of a right amount of data over the data

security to the provider. The provider has to understand the business desires for data privacy and

safety. Data availability and business continuity is another risk factor. It can be unfortunate for

the business if there at any time occurs internet failure. The cloud provider has to ensure that

there is a full-time internet connectivity and when a vulnerability has been identified, there is a

need to terminate all the access to cloud provider until the case is rectified. Data recovery is also

a risk factor associated with cloud computing. Hosting the computing resources and data in the

cloud makes the provider's recovery capabilities a significant aspect of the business recovery

plans. A business owner has to know the data recovery abilities and asks the provider to test their

effectiveness (Jajodia, 2016).

Report Section 2- E-commerce Presence

Main idea behind the online retail

Online bookstores have become a first hit in the current century because the books are offered at

low prices than in the physical stores and because there is no significant difference between the

online and the offline purchase. However, many people have since shifted to online purchasing

as they can easily find their desired books without having to locate a physical bookstore. Online

bookstores are available at a click with available internet connectivity and a computer or tablet.

In this century, many people have gone digital with the advance in technology, and as such,

many households have internet access and digital devices to use over the web. Many students are

also using the online platform for various purposes, and it seemed wise to introduce an online

bookstore to also catch their attention. The online bookstore also makes work easier during

purchase as it is easier to scan the book and make a selection. Online book retailer gives a

preview that reveals more about the book than the physical appearance and quick glance of its

content.

The most appeal for the online bookstore is the low prices. The stores operating exclusively

online can afford to reduce their prices because they do not buy or rent space for the books or

there is no hiring of a team of employees to serve the clients. Also, when there is an order from

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the online store, it does not have to be physically in the warehouse, but the order can be

forwarded to the publisher or the wholesalers. The process reduces the operational costs allowing

online retailers to sell their books at significantly low prices and still earn some profits. The

stores make it convenient to the clients as the product is just a click away and no need to hustle

around looking for a store to get the book.

Money and funding

The business does not need a lot of capital to be able to run. It only needs a website and a

network with different publishing institutions where the books will be coming from. The primary

requirement from the business is a well-published website that will be an interface between the

customers and the book retailer. The website have already been made, and it is just a matter of

launching it, and all will be good to go. However, there will be small capital needed to be able to

get a client the ordered books from the retailers. The capital will be generated from the savings

and contributions from friends and family. In cases where there will be bulk purchases, and there

will be a huge amount, the funding will be sourced from the banks that will give loads at a fair

rate.

Target audience

The target market for the business will be people from various walks of life. The store will have

different books for different clients. Students, researchers and creative writers will be among the

target audience for the business. Students will range from pre-school students to university

students. The online book retail will accommodate books from the low school to university,

making it a universal store. The store will offer services to people across all gender as long as a

customer finds a book they intend to buy. People from different locations can buy the books and

delivery will be done for individuals who wish to have the hard copies, and soft copy pdf will be

sent to clients who prefer pdf copies. For international clients, the books can be delivered

through shipping that will off course come with additional shipping charges. The store offers

books for people with different income levels. Low, middle and high-income earners can all

access books from the online store. Mostly, the target customers are those whose lifestyle

revolves around the use of the internet. These are the people who would find it easier to make

orders online as they have all the resources to access the website. Purchasing habits will not be

an issue. The store welcome both active, dormant, and new customers and all will be served

equally.

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Size and characteristics of the market

The size of the market is never an estimate as millions of people use the internet globally, and

they all have access to the website as it is hosted on a public cloud. Anyone who wishes to

purchase from the online store is welcome from different parts of the world as deliveries are

made globally via shipping. The market can be divided into many potential buyers with regards

to their age and gender. Apart from the academic resources, other books are read for general

education and others for lifestyle and fun. These books are categorized as per the gender

difference as a certain gender is more likely to purchase specific books than the other. There is

also an occupational difference; there are students and researchers who also wish to purchase

books. Students will be served on a student’s platform on the website, and they will have prices

suiting their affordability. There are the domestic and international buyers who also have a

different price range as international clients have to pay for shipping.

Strategic and development timeline goals

As the business commences, there will be a close monitor on the customer preferences and

behavior regarding the services offered. There will be a popup survey menu on every new and

existing customer to be able to get feedback on what the client’s desires or expect from the

website. All the feedback will be assessed, and the desires and preferences of the customers will

be highly considered. Transformations will frequently be made during the system maintenance to

make the website more attractive and promising for the clients. The business is expected to grow

within a year and make the best interest in its first half as there is every reason to believe that the

customers will enjoy the services from the site.

Report Section 3- E-commerce Security Environment

As much as e-commerce has been associated with benefits towards the clients and the business

owner, there are several security issues associated with the business that has to be addressed to

be able to have a smooth running of the business. There are security risks facing the e-commerce

that business owners and service providers have to ensure are controlled to have a secured

transaction over the internet. Some of the associated risks are;

Loss of control

There are chances of a possible loss of control of the data being transferred via the cloud and the

network availability from the internet. In the traditional setting, companies have the ability to

evaluate and adjust their systems to be compliant with the regulations and standards set.

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Companies sending data to a cloud provider in the European member states has to be following

the data protection requirements by the EU. There are many unethical internet users who can

pose many risk challenges to the online business systems. The online book retail website can

suffer in the hands of unauthorized and malicious persons who have hidden interest. These

unauthorized access can interfere with the data from the website by removing some of the

important information or posting false information on behalf of the business owner. The data that

the clients will-will see on the website will be false, and they can be trapped into false purchase

or even fraud cases. The business owner, in this instance, can be deprived of the control of the

website, and many unethical factors can happen before regaining control of the online business.

The customers would have been tricked into a fraud business, and the business will have lost its

reputation and its potential clients (Mahmood, 2014).

Data security

Data security is considered a key benefit that many cloud providers have usually cited as their

marketing efforts taking advantage of the many companies with no capabilities to manage to

secure their data and systems. However, outsourcing the data to a single provider comes with

aggregated risks. Many companies have failed to recognize their responsibility to secure their

data before it can be sent to the cloud and they also fail to acknowledge the fact that the cloud

providers will not guarantee their security of the data. In the business environment today, there is

a growth in the use of big data and analytics that is followed rapidly by the growth of the value

of the personal information stored by organizations in the cloud. Organizations storing the

Personal Identifiable Information (PII) are expected to note the growth of the definition of what

constitutes the PII as many data are still being categorized within the definition. When the data is

not properly secured, it might expose the organization when the statutes and regulations demand

the protection of elements as zipping codes. However, the significant aspect to note is that the

growth of the definition of the personally identifiable information and the combination of these

elements could result in greater risks.

Phishing

This is another of the risks associated with e-commerce business, and it refers to the spoof emails

and other tricks attempting to make people give their personally identifiable information. It is a

type of identity theft that employs both the social engineering and technical efforts to steal access

information or other information that can be sold to a third party using specialized chat rooms

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that have been established for the purpose of selling information of such kinds. Selling the

information on is said to reduce the risks of being apprehended as it minimizes the link between

the hacker and the users of the information to gain the unauthorized access to accounts and

profiting from them. The social engineering schemes employ the spoof emails that lead

customers to fake websites that have been designed to trick people into exposing their financial

data. The Technical subterfuge schemes have crime ware planted onto computers to allow the

unethical experts to steal the credentials by using the keylogging systems. Phishing has been

since a serious and rapidly increasing spam and also appears to be among the major techniques in

business and consumer identity theft.

Achieving a secure e-commerce environment for your online business

Management of the post-purchase transactions

Optimal fraud service offering should entail a system that reviews the operations under the

“accept” and “reject” thresholds to allow the merchant staff to identify the appropriate activities

in an operation with a single dashboard. The panel can include many tools and features that assist

the merchants not only with the first resolutions of the operation but with a follow-up activities

as reporting and performance analysis. The life cycle of fraud done not start and stop with the

attempt to purchase. To actively handle the fraud incidences, business people have to find a

database that can maintain a detailed record and be used to understand transactions trending over

prolonged period. Representing and resolving the fraud cases can be a technical issue and time to

consume. Dashboards utilized by the merchants can help extract the details of a transaction to

help with the re-presentment efforts for more money.

Real-time categorizing and resolution

Transactions with risk scores exceeding certain thresholds that is defined by the business owner

of the fraud expert can automatically be placed into various categories for further actions. The

transaction can be accepted immediately or rejected but can as well be flagged for a manual

evaluation if it is among the two classes. The categorization process can need manual efforts to

be compatible with the authorization or the fulfillment actions depending on the expert providing

the solution to fraud cases. Many businesses have been fortunate to allow fraud services to

operate in-line with the payment verification flow that needs very low intervention by the

merchant and streamlining the business processes (Bavisi, 2009).

Fraud detection measures

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The merchant can also seek to install systems that detect fraud incidences like the unauthorized

access to their accounts of activities. The system can also be in place to identify genuine buyers

and fraudsters and raise the alarm before any transaction is complete. The system will need to

have full-time surveillance to be able to have a quick response in case any alarms are raised. The

system should be able to protect both the merchant and their customers from fraud cases.

Report Section 4 – E-commerce Retailing

Challenges online and offline integration in business

Both online and offline sales are important in business as every business needs to make profits in

the industry and become an outstanding enterprise and a competitive factor in the market.

However, in the integration of both online and offline sales in the online book retail market can

be associated with certain challenges. However, the online platform can also be challenging and

tricky to attract and retain customers.

Online and offline integration

Over demand of books

By selling online and offline, the business attracts many clients in the store. It is a positive

reflection of business, but it is to the disadvantage of the brand's reputation in the market. Being

a startup business, there are possibilities that the books in the store are not enough to satisfy the

needs of all the clients. As such, there will be an over demand in the market while the business

will have little to offer to the customers and as such, some of the customers will not be served

within the desirable timeline especially the online clients who make orders online and expect

deliveries within a specified time. Also, the customers visiting the stores can become wild and

irritated when they visit the store only to find the book they are looking for, that they saw online

that it is available, it out of stock. The business risks losing many customers because of this

factor. As such, it is advisable to remain focused in online sales until the company is stable and

has evaluated the market and the buying habits of the customers (Ionita, Litoiu & Lewis, 2013).

Lack of enough capital

Because customers will be many from both online and offline platforms, the business will need

more money to be able to purchase enough books and make them available for the customers in

the store. As the industry is finding its feet in the market, and that it has to assess and evaluate

the market, there will be a major problem as customers will exceed the books in the store and

there will be no capital to supply enough of them to satisfy all the clients. The business will be at

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risk of losing clients at an early stage in the firm, and it will be difficult to attract more customers

or even retain the customers. There will also be a problem in recruiting staffs to assist in offline

sales as they will need to get paid while the business will not have enough money to sustain

them. As a result, there will be a lack of enough labor to serve the customers.

Poor services

While using the online platform alone, the business will need no team of employees to serve the

customers as they will be using the website as an interface to connect to the merchant. With the

incorporation of the offline services, it means the business has to find the extra human resources

to be able to serve the customers who will be flowing in and out of the stress. As such, the

business risk offering poor services as customers will experience delays and congestion waiting

to be served. The customers will most likely not like the services and will look for another

bookshop to buy their desired books.

Online sales

Even though the online store can be quick and simple than the physical stores, the absence of a

location for business makes it more costly to drive customers through to the business. The

enterprise will have to accept large marketing budgets compared to the offline stores. There will

be a high need to allocate resources and time to marketing to be able to create awareness of the

existence of the business since there will be no interactions on a face-to-face basis. The business

will need to go extra miles to be able to give the customers confidence in the store and assure

them of the worthiness of the business. To earn the trust of the customers is usually a challenge

as many people have turned out to be fraudsters especially in the online business. Most of the

customers will be reluctant to purchase goods from an online store that has not been on business

and had no reviews yet. Cases of loss of money over the online platform will also be another

issue that will prevent many customers from purchasing from a new online store. Assuring the

clients that transaction over the website is safe and free from hackers and other cyber-attacks will

be among the key challenges in the online business (Krutz & Vines, 2013).

A good number of customers love bargaining before making their purchases. As such, they will

shy off from using the inline marketing sites and will prefer going to a physical store to make the

purchases. While at the physical stores, the customers get assistance from the sales team and

enjoy interacting with them. This can be a big hit to online retain if many clients prefer having a

sales assistant to take them through the product before buying. Online purchases also have terms

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and conditions that can be a barrier to many customers. While buying in a physical store, one can

easily return a product and get a refund. The online store is different as the terms and conditions

make it have a long process before one can get a refund from the company. There will be many

documents to be given as a proof of purchase, and the verification process can be long and

tiresome.

Conclusions and Recommendation

As much as e-commerce has been associated with benefits towards the clients and the business

owner, there are several security issues associated with the business that has to be addressed to

be able to have a smooth running of the business. The online book retail website can suffer in the

hands of unauthorized and malicious persons who have hidden interest. These unauthorized

access can interfere with the data from the website by removing some of the important

information or posting false information on behalf of the business owner. Organizations storing

the Personal Identifiable Information (PII) are expected to note the growth of the definition of

what constitutes the PII as many data are still being categorized within the definition.

Transactions with risk scores exceeding certain thresholds that is defined by the business owner

of the fraud expert can automatically be placed into various categories for further actions. The

transaction can be accepted immediately or rejected but can as well be flagged for a manual

evaluation if it is among the two classes. Both online and offline sales are important in business

as every business needs to make profits in the industry and become an outstanding enterprise and

a competitive factor in the market. Because customers will be many from both online and offline

platforms, the business will need more capital to be able to purchase enough books and make

them available for the customers in the store. Even though the online store can be quick and

simple than the physical stores, the absence of a location for a business makes it more costly to

drive customers through to the business. The enterprise will have to accept large marketing

budgets compared to the offline stores.

It is recommended that the business should ensure that its online platform has the capability to

attract customers and assure them of a safe and secured online transactions. This is after it has

been identified that many potential online buyers fear being victims of fraud cases and loss of

money to fraudsters.

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The business also have to implement security measures to protect both the merchant and the

clients. The merchant can also seek to install systems that detect fraud incidences like the

unauthorized access to their business accounts. The system can also be in place to detect genuine

buyers and fraudsters and raise alarm before any transaction is complete. Optimal fraud service

offering should entail a system that reviews the transactions under the “accept” and “reject”

thresholds to allow the merchant staff to identify the appropriate activities on a transaction with a

single dashboard.

There has been a challenge of people opting for offline business because there are sales

assistance to assist in purchasing. The online platform can also have online support assistant who

should be there to answer every questions customers have and assist them in other ways before

they can make their purchases. This will make online purchasing more comfortable than

expected.