For many companies, e-commerce is thought of as a second business, a new way to make money without all the struggles of a physical store. Many times, this second business doesn't get the care and attention that an e-commerce company needs to remain safe and working properly. Security measures that can be taken are not, and openings in the company's server can be exploited. These attacks are evidence that the internet has its flaws, and people can not rest assured that they will not be robbed while surfing the internet. Even if a company stays current with software updates, and security patches for their software there are always holes, ways to breech any system.
Cryptography is, in some ways, the heart of keeping information secure.
Most companies rely on the encryption offered by both Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Netscape's Navigator. The consumer must be wary of the encryption capabilities of their own software and the encryption software of the company they are buying from. There are web pages that ask for personal information over their server that are not secure. It is up to the consumer to make sure that they have the most up to date version of their browser and to make for certain that the sites being bought from use servers with the same encryption standards. To check what encryption the browser currently being used, and to get updates for any browser, Fortify.net offers a free service to help with encryption needs.