For the first few years of e-business, Web surfers would, on average, give a page seven seconds to load before clicking away. The latest studies show that Web users are increasingly impatient, even expecting response times of as little as one second, which is the old standard for local online systems. Close on the heels of performance is stability. E-business Web sites need to be up, and they need to stay up. These sites need to be able to handle volume swings and keep on running, while still delivering good performance.
Reliability is particularly important for financial transactions.
Once started, any transaction that deals with money must either finish successfully or cancel cleanly. Leaving financial transactions in limbo or giving that impression undermines customer confidence and will reduce sales. Customers need confidence that their transactions are secure during processing and afterward, when they are stored in databases. Protecting databases behind firewalls, through encryption, and with passwords and other standard measures, should be standard practice. Keeping data confidential through a strict opt-in privacy policy is another element of good security practices.