This means that we must try to overcome the real and perceived risks of electronic commerce transactions - both to business and to consumers. A number of issues arise. There is for example the issue of the privacy of data collected during electronic transaction. Only the other day, a credit bureau accidentally published its full list on the open Internet. This has serious implications for personal privacy.
Security is a related issue.
For example, a survey by the US Federal Trade Commission indicated that, of the 212 children's web sites surveyed, almost ninety per cent collect personal information from children. Less than a quarter of these sites tell children to seek parental permission before providing information to the site. Many Internet consumers are also deeply concerned about the security of payment systems, the reliability of businesses they cannot see or speak to and the lack of opportunity to take action when things go wrong. Clearly, we need ground rules for buying and selling on the Internet. The second major area for investigation is that of establishing ground rules for operation.