Mobile payment systems in Malaysia: Its potentials and consumers’ adoption strategies

Mobile Money is a PIN-based Mobile Payment Solution designed by Mobile Money International Sdn Bhd to address the limitations and bottlenecks created by cash, cheques and credit cards. It unlocks the power of the mobile phone to make payments, allowing registered users to pay for goods and services at anytime, anywhere using only a mobile phone coupled with a 6-digit security PIN (Personal Identification Number) via SMS (Short Messaging Service). This gives the freedom to shoppers to buy products online and pay the merchant using his/her mobile phone without being physically present at the store.

When it comes to online selling, selecting a payment gateway is one of the major obstacles faced by the merchants in Malaysia. There are too few choices available, worse; none of these limited choices are cost effective. This problem has been addressed by Mobile Money, since it allows merchants to take online order without the need for online shopper to disclose their credit card information. For more information, you can go to visit the website as http://www.neowave.com.my/mobilemoney_overview.asp.

Mobile Money will encourage more consumers to shop online. This will definitely be a great boon to the e-commerce industry in Malaysia. It will surely encourage more merchants to adopt online selling as an extra sales channel which complement perfectly with their offline sales channel to help them sell more of their goods and services. This feature allows merchants to accept payment via Mobile Money and process the payment in real time within clicks.

Mobile Money functions like a Credit Card if a shopper applies for a "Pay by Mobile Phone" credit card account (eg Hong Leong Mobile Credit Card). The shopper will be billed by the bank accordingly by month's end. In addition, it functions as a Debit Card if it is tied to shopper's savings or current account. The amount will be deducted instantly from the account upon successful transaction.

Credit Card Debts: causes and prevention

Nowadays, credit card debts are major cause of bankruptcies each year. It is because many people have never realized of its consequences from financial and non financial perspectives when get a new credit card or not enough safety net when there is an incident happen.

Causes:
Poor money management is one of the best reasons that why so many families have accumulated many credit card debts. It is because people are unaware to conduct a monthly spending plan and do not keep track of monthly bills. People have never realized their spending on the items that are useless and do not have any value in their life. Thus, it has lead to a rise in debts by using credit cards.
Second, Credit card will probably become one of the sources of funds to pay off the medical expenses if health insurance is not adequate to cover the medical bills if one of your family members suffers serious illness. In United States, almost everyone pays their medical expenses by credit cards to get treatment.

Prevention
Firstly, user should create a budget and stick to it. A clear budget that includes all of your monthly bills, food, entertainment and miscellaneous items will prevent you from spending thoughtlessly and buying on impulse
Secondly, user also can maintain clear financial records and a regular payment schedule. Disorganization can cause you to overlook bills and overestimate how much you have to spend. Dedicate a specific time every month (just after payday is best) when you can sit down with your finances, pay your bills and determine how much you have to spend for the month ahead.

Referred links:
1.http://www.mozdex.com/prevent-credit-card-debt/ 2.http://ezinearticles.com/?Understanding-Credit-Card-Debt-Problems&id=1225936 3.http://www.fastweb.com/fastweb/resources/articles/index/102925 4.http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/debt/debt_manage_2004/top-10-causes.asp
5.http://www.ehow.com/how_2080761_avoid-bankruptcy.html

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

Most businesses that have made the move towards an online presence have experienced some kind of security threat to their business. Since the Internet is a public system in which every transaction can be tracked, logged, monitored and stored in many locations, it is important for businesses to understand possible security threats to their business.
Security has three main concepts: confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Confidentiality allows only authorized parties to read protected information. Integrity ensures data remains as is from the sender to the receiver. Availability ensures you have access and are authorized to resources.

There are many threats to e-commerce that may come from sources within an organization or individual. The followings are some of the potential security threats that can be found.

(a) Tricking the shopper - It is one of the easiest and most profitable attacks, also known as social engineering techniques. These attacks involve surveillance of the shopper’s behavior, gathering information to use against the shopper.

(b)Snooping the shopper's computer - Most users’ knowledge of security vulnerabilities of their systems is vague at best. Additionally, software and hardware vendors, in their quest to ensure that their products are easy to install, will ship products with security features disabled. In most cases, enabling security features requires a non-technical user to read manuals written for the technologist. The confused user does not attempt to enable the security features. This creates a treasure trove for attackers.

(c)Sniffing the network - Here, the attacker monitors the data between the shopper’s computer and the server. He collects data about the shopper or steals personal information, such as credit card numbers.

(d)Using known server bugs - The attacker analyzes the site to find what types of software are used on the site. He then proceeds to find what patches were issued for the software. Additionally, he searches on how to exploit a system without the patch. He proceeds to try each of the exploits. The sophisticated attacker finds a weakness in a similar type of software, and tries to use that to exploit the system. This is a simple, but effective attack.

The example of current threat of online security are as follow:

(a) Automated SQL Injection Attacks: Over the past few months, IBM X-Force has seen an escalation of SQL injection and other web-related attacks. In the past few weeks, these attacks have culminated into automated SQL injection attacks that, in some cases, have systematically defaced websites.

(b)Active Exploitation - Adobe Flash Player RCE: Several reports have stated that a zero-day Flash vulnerability is being exploited through several Chinese hacker websites. All of the samples X-Force has seen target the vulnerability disclosed in this Advisory, and X-Force has confirmed that the IPS protection released in November of 2007 does block these samples that are circulating in the wild.

Electronic Currency

Electronic money, also known as e-money, electronic cash, electronic currency, digital money, digital cash or digital currency) refers to money or scrip which is exchanged only electronically. Typically, this involves use of computer networks, the internet and digital stored value systems. Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) and direct deposit are examples of electronic money. Also, it is a collective term for financial cryptography and technologies enabling it.

Electronic currency is essentially a system that allows a person to pay for goods or services by transmitting a number from one computer to another. These transactions are carried out electronically, transferring funds from one party to another, by either a debit or credit. These funds are instantly cleared and secured by using strong encryption, thus eliminating the payment risk to the consumer. It is only a matter of time before electronic currency will replace the present monetary systems. Thus, electronic currency is the digital representation of money, or more accurately, the digital representation of currency.

Digital Currency is also known as Electronic Currency. Digital Currencies are able to provide privacy to their customers, and still be able to guarantee that they are not being used for money laundering. Digital Currencies are "orthogonal" to the traditional financial world. As long as all the money coming in and out goes through banks with anti-money laundering practices in place, then money laundering is impossible. Furthermore, all of the Digital Currencies in business at this time are firmly committed to discouraging crime and money laundering, while at the same time protecting the privacy of their account holders. This means you can use Digital Currencies to do business with confidence that you are in good company!

Reference:
http://centregold.ca/
http://www.murdoch.edu.au/elaw/issues/v6n3/ishman63.html
http://www.nowpublic.com/what_is_digital_currency_digital_money_real_cash

The application of 3rd party certification programme in Malaysia

Third-party certification is a scientific process by which a product or service is reviewed by a reputable and unbiased third party to verify that a set of criteria, claims or standards are being met. Certification Authority (CA) is a trusted third party in a public key security system is responsible for vouchsafing the identity of users and issuing them with certificates that bind the public key to their identities.

MSC Trustgate.com was established in 1999 as a licensed Certification Authority (CA) in Malaysia under the Digital Signature Act 1997. MSC Trustgate.com provides security solutions and trusted services to help companies build a secure network and application infrastructure for their electronic transactions and communications over the network. MSC Trustgate.com commitment in delivering high quality services has brought them recognitions with the enterprises, government, and many leading e-commerce sites, both locally and internationally. MSC Trustgate.com state-of-the-art data center located in Cyberjaya is one of the most advanced in ASEAN and conforms to IT security standard, Orange Book Tier 4. All of MSC Trustgate.com consultants undergo a stringent certification process and continuous training programs and are well experienced in deploying large-scale projects.

Moreover, MSC Trustgate.com is an affiliate of Verisign Inc. for the South East Asian region and a member of the Verisign Trust Network. MSC Trustgate.com is membership allows its customers to enjoy a globally recognized service that is compatible with the existing technological requirements. It offers market leading trust services, including authentication and validation, needed by websites, enterprises, and e-commerce service providers to conduct trusted and secure electronic commerce and communications over IP networks.

Besides that, MSC Trustgate.com also establishing a payment infrastructure based on the Secure Electronic Transaction protocol. SET is endorsed by Bank Negara and MEPS and enables internet based payment transactions using credit cards.

Reference:
http://www.msctrustgate.com/
http://www.trademal.com/global/index.php/id/17463/MSC_Trustgate_com_Sdn_Bhd/index.html
http://www.technopreneurdevelopment.net.my/Techno/PwrSearch/List.asp?keyword=trustgate

How to safeguard OUR personal and financial data

Nowadays, we always exposed our personal information, names, addresses, phone numbers, and identity card number, bank and credit card number and other financial data to other parties such as government institutes, e-commerce companies, website operator, financial institutions and friends by accidentally or as require by those parties. Sometimes, we may wonder to know, how can make our personal and financial data more secure and being protected by not reveal it to that irrelevant party and prevent financial data from being used illegally by third parties. These are some advices are given to individual concerning how to prevent personal and financial data.
Firstly we should always keep our receipts, bank account statements, credit-card bills, or even addressed direct mail (DM). However, if people want to throw away these documents as trash, they should shred them first. Secondly, we have to pay attention and alert to regular mail such as monthly bills or bank account statements if there is any delay of deliver, to find out whether they have been stolen or any other reasons. Next, do not reveal any personal information or particularly passwords to anyone. After using any of the Financial Data Center or member services, must remember to log out properly before leaving the Financial Data Center.
Meanwhile, we also have to keep our card close to us. Whether you are out shopping or eating out, watch how clerks handle your card. Then take your receipt with you and never throw it away in a public place and should pay attention when using an ATM and keep your eyes peeled for anyone who seems a little too interested in your transactions. Use your free hand to shield the keypad when entering your PIN. Besides that, banker can add on fingerprint scanning on ATM machine. Some more, keep credit cards to a minimum. It only keeps the ones you actually use and destroy any that you no longer use by shredding them.
We should aware that personal and financial data should be threat as private and confidential in anyway and anytime. By using proper ways to protect our personal and financial data are same as protect our own personal safety. All of us should be concern about this issue and must takes care our own right.

Further information can refer below website:
http://ecommerze.wordpress.com/2008/06/17/how-to-safeguard-personal-financial-data/ 17 Jun 2008
http://qlignrinayi.blogspot.com/2008/06/how-to-safeguard-our-personal-and.html%2021%20June%202008
http://amazingcommerce.wordpress.com/2008/06/18/how-to-safeguard-our-personal-and-financial-data/ 18 June 2008

Phishing: Examples and its prevention methods

Phishing is the act of sending an e-mail to a user falsely claiming to be an established legitimate enterprise in an attempt to scam the user into surrendering private information that will be used for identity theft. The e-mail directs the user to visit a Web site where they are asked to update personal information, such as passwords and credit card, social security, and bank account numbers, that the legitimate organization already has. The Web site, however, is bogus and set up only to steal the user's information.

The following is the example of phishing:-

The above phishing scam said that if you did not initiate the log ins, please visit PayPal as soon as possible to log in and perform the steps necessary to restore your account access, and the link is provided at the bottom of the page, if you click the link, you will be serious because the link will be opened in the new page, and it is asking you to key in your personal information and submit it to them, after you submit it, one of them maybe use your information for some other purpose like apply loan and so on.

Since there is very serious in phishing scam, there have several methods to prevent phishing scam are as below:-
1. Keep antivirus up to date – One of the most important things you can do to avoid phishing attacks is keep your antivirus software up-to-date because most antivirus vendors have signatures that protect against some common technology exploits. This can prevent things such as a Trojan disguising your Web address bar or mimicking an https secure link. If your antivirus software is not up-to-date, you are usually more susceptible to attacks that can hijack your Web browser and put you at risk for phishing attacks.

2. Do not click on hyperlinks in e-mails – It is never a good idea to click on any hyperlink in an e-mail, especially from unknown sources. You never know where the link is going to really take you or whether it will trigger malicious code. Some hyperlinks can take you to a fake HTML page that may try to scam you into typing sensitive information. If you really want to check out the link, manually retype it into a Web browser.

3. Verify https (SSL) – Whenever you are passing sensitive information such as credit cards or bank information, make sure the address bar shows "https://" rather than just "http://" and that you have a secure lock icon at the bottom right hand corner of your Web browser. You can also double-click the lock to guarantee the third-party SSL certificate that provides the https service. Many types of attacks are not encrypted but mimic an encrypted page. Always look to make sure the Web page is truly encrypted.

4. Don't enter sensitive or financial information into pop-up windows - A common phishing technique is to launch a bogus pop-up window when someone clicks on a link in a phishing e-mail message. This window may even be positioned directly over a window you trust. Even if the pop-up window looks official or claims to be secure, you should avoid entering sensitive information because there is no way to check the security certificate. Close pop-up windows by clicking on the X in the top-right corner. Clicking cancel may send you to another link or download malicious code.

References:-

1. http://www.krowenlaw.com/defphishing.htm.

2. http://antivirus.about.com/od/emailscams/ss/phishing_7.htm, 2008.

3. http://articles.techrepublic.com.com/5100-10878_11-5818568.html?tag=rbxccnbtr1, 2008.