ecommerce recommendations and related topics
SSL
(pronounced as separate letters) Short for Secure Sockets Layer, a protocol developed by Netscape for transmitting private documents via the Internet. SSL uses a cryptographic system that uses two keys to encrypt data − a public key known to everyone and a private or secret key known only to the recipient of the message. Both Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer support SSL, and many Web sites use the protocol to obtain confidential user information, such as credit card numbers.By convention, URLs that require an SSL connection start with https: instead of http:.
Another protocol for transmitting data securely over the World Wide Web is Secure HTTP (S-HTTP). Whereas SSL creates a secure connection between a client and a server, over which any amount of data can be sent securely, S-HTTP is designed to transmit individual messages securely. SSL and S-HTTP, therefore, can be seen as complementary rather than competing technologies. Both protocols have been approved by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) as a standard.
Also see SSL: Your Key to E-commerce Security in Webopedia's "Did You Know...?" section.
opt-in e-mail
A term that refers to promotional e-mails that have been requested by the individual receiving them. Unlike spam promotional e-mails that get sent out to large lists of recipients without regard to whether or not they want the information, opt-in e-mails are only sent to people who specifically request them.
Opt-in e-mails are targeted and often personalized and carry information about specific topics or promotions that users are interested in learning about. Typical opt-in e-mails contain newsletters, product information or special promotional offers. For example, if a user frequented a Web site that sold books and music online, that user could "opt in" to receive announcements when his favorite author or musician released new material. The promotional e-mail may even present the recipient with a special promotional offer to purchase the product at a discount available only to those on the opt-in list.
Spammers, however, have found a way to use the opt-in feature to their advantage. Spam e-mails often come with opt-in features in fine print or obscured somewhere in the body of the e-mail with text that reads something to the effect of "Failure to respond to this e-mail will automatically opt-in the recipient to future mailings." The strategy of responding to the spam and asking to be removed from future mailings also has critics as some claim that responding to a spam e-mail with a request to be removed from the mailing list signals that the e-mail address is a working address and the address can then be passed on to other spammers.
Also see Getting Rid of Spam in the Did You Know section of Webopedia.
Anatomy of a Credit Card Transaction: The Basics
For a bigger understanding of a credit card transaction, the consequent is a
step-by-step breakdown: from the customer making a purchase using ECmerchant to
the merchant receiving an authorization on the value request. This not only
shows who is involved in this path , however it will highlight some considerations
in choosing an Internet value supply and establishing a merchant credit card
account.
Once the merchant account is in settle with an acquiring financial school
the merchant will desire to understand how money will be moved from the customers'
accounts to the merchant account. The best path to appreciate how an Internet
merchant gets paid is to follow a typical credit card transaction path . Fully
automated from end-to-end, in most cases it takes just seconds to entire.
1. A customer visits a web site, using average web browser software,
and fills her ECmerchant shopping cart.
2. The customer and ECmerchant exchange details online regarding
addresses, delivery and final value.
3. ECmerchant then displays the 'BUY' button to the customer, and a
transaction is initiated.
4. The customer clicks the 'BUY' button, prompting ECmerchant
to mail and electronic invoice.
5. ECmerchant provides transaction details in a form or the shopper's
browser automatically opens her online wallet, allowing her to select a value
instrument.
6. An encrypted charge value message is sent to ECmerchant.
7. When the server software receives the value message, it adds
merchant identification data.
8. The value request is encrypted and forwarded to gateway server
hosted by an ECommerce value supply corporation.
9. The gateway server decrypts the message and authenticates customers'
data and merchant validation.
10. A message is sent over secure, private financial networks to the
merchant's bank or authorized processor requesting charge approval.
11. Once the request is processed, a positive or negative response is
sent back to ECmerchant and on to the customer.
12. If the transaction is authorized, a digital receipt is delivered,
and the transaction is entire and captured.
