Chapter X - ELECTRONIC COMMERCE SECURITY * Smart Shoppers attracts Smart Cyber Criminals

Users have always been the weakest point in terms of cyber security threats. System and network administrators are constantly updating and maintaining their computers network with the latest technology to prevent and contain a variety of security risks but the headache is always users behavior. Weak passwords, careless browsing, indiscipline towards security policies are some of the flaws committed by users which could open back doors of the systems and compromise corporate data, assets and in the worst scenario, represents huge financial losses to companies.

With the rising trend of smartphone adoption the risk is now been transferred to users pockets. Smart shoppers are using their devices through all the transaction funnel. The possibility to buy goods or services and make financial transaction such as, money transfer through the Smartphone devices is available now to half of the Americans. The growing popularity is attracting criminals and antivirus firms are reporting for 2010 the rise of 46% of security threats to mobile devices.

Virus, trojan horses and other malicious codes usually build to target PCs are now directed to mobile devices.  Hidden between applications and games these threats take advantage of connectivity and computing power of the devices to trigger every kind of criminal actions such as destroy data, spying user, steal personal information, make calls, send messages or even take control of the device and use it remotely to attack servers.

Sloopy codes of the applications are other entry sources for malware attacks. In 2009 Citigroup launched a mobile banking application for iPhone which was not properly sealed and could have let criminals access to the banking information for 118,000 clients who downloaded the application. Fortunately the flaw was discover before any attack and clients didn't lost money or information. These kind of threat highlights the risk that is around and how desirable the mobile platform is becoming for cyber-criminals.


Symbiam OS is the most affect by these threats but Android is becoming highly targeted. With a huge base of applications, specialists are saying that 2% of the apps are able to send messages without user's knowledge, while 5% can dial without permission, and since Android OS is an open platform the vulnerability is very high. Contrasting, till now the iOS from Apple is the most secure. Applications in the Apple Store are submitted to a verification process to guaranty that they are secure before going online.

However, since most user don't even think about security on smartphones, vendors are all working on to make the mobile OS more secure, locking down possible entry's and creating centralize feature to neutralize menaces.

Online Sources:
King5Technology
MobileMedia
VentureBeat
Articles:
- Bloomberg Business Week - Smartphones Apps Go (Trully) Viral
- SC Magazine - Smart Target

Chapter VIII - Moving from the old to the new Internet Protocol

ICANN's ceromony to allocate the last five blocks of IPv4 address - February 3rd, 2011. Miami

35 years ago, Mr. Vint Cerf and scientists colleagues decided that a pool of 4,3 billion network address spaces would be enough to allocate an experiment of connecting computers in an advanced data network. At that time nobody could predict what now became the Internet with 2 billion users around the globe and all its transversal impacts in the modern society. 


On February 3rd, 2010, the network naming system protocol (IPv4) - which is the unique sequence of number assigned to each website, computer or device connected to the Internet - was considered completed depleted by ICANN when the last five blocks were allocated to the 5 registries region in the globe.

Now the world is shifting to the new Internet Protocol (IPv6) which represents a huge expansion of the pool of addresses and creates a new base for Internet growth. Fortunately, this was predicted and since late 90s, when the IPv6 was approved, organizations all over the world are preparing for the change. 


For many sources, this situation reminds the Millennium bug when computers and software needed to be updated so they could recognize the year 2000 and beyond. But the Internet Protocol migration seems far more complex because the two protocol families are largely incompatible, and as long the the process will be shifting gradually, the Internet will be working in a dual slack. So there is no end date for the migration and during this, users could experience shutdown on their Internet networks. 


Concerns about this issues is being addressed everywhere by Internet authorities, governments, regulators, corporations and network specialists. For users, the shift should be smooth and be something like "changing gears" in the words of the father of the Internet. Meanwhile, as long the IPv6 is prepared to connect a board range of the devices to the Internet, users could need held to setup their devices, routers, systems and applications. 


Globally countries are also running to adopt the new protocol. In Cape Verde, the regulator for Internet and Telecommunication has been organizing workshops and activities to prepare for the migration. For this country, which has only 9 IP address ranges, IPv6 represents a big gate to expand Internet infrastructure, mobile connectivity and services based on such as e-commerce, e-learning, and consolidate the e-government initiative.


Hopefully IPv6 will represent a real development opportunity for a country like Cape Verde who will have real chances to expand the Cyber Islands project and become a hub of services in the mid-Atlantic Ocean. 


Sources:
ICANN - Nonprofit corporation that coordinates the Internet Naming System
ANAC - Cape Verde's Regulator for Internet and Telecommunication
Q&A about IPv6
IPv6 and developing countries
Drumming up more Addresses on the Internet
Avoiding the pitfalls when transitioning to IPv6
Going IPv6 isn't going to be easy

Chapter 2 - Technology Infrastructure: The Internet and the World Wide Web

"In 40 years, the Internet has grown to become one of the most amazing technological and social accomplishments of the last millennium." Schneider Gary, Chapter 2

Despite being a recent phenomenon the Internet and IT infrastructure has become a central piece in modern society and a huge tool to accelerate progress in developing countries. New emerging opportunities could help small and poor economies in the identification of new development strategies to overcome chronic problems such as lack of natural resources, geographical isolation, population dispersion and other structural conditions.

Presently this is the Cape Verde situation. The country was recently promoted by the UN from the least developing countries group to the medium income group which rewards the efforts made in the last decade and improvements in the Human Development Index. On the other hand Cape Verde is still vulnerable with a highly dependable economy.

In this scenario ICT reveals to be strategic for the Capeverdean development. In that direction, authorities are implementing cutting edge initiatives to overcome the country's current issues. The e-government program is impacting lives and promoting the rise of the information society connecting capeverdeans across the world (diaspora) with their fellow citizens in the islands. The online service "House of the Citizen" (Casa do Cidadão) is a one-stop shop where various services of the administration are available allowing effective access to the public information, delivering efficient services with increasing levels of accountability.

Meanwhile, Cape Verde has to develop the ICT sector to sustain the present achievement. In regards to the ICT development, I.T.U. - International Telecommunication Union reports that in 2010 the country was ranked in the 102 position which reflects the higher telecommunications cost. In 2009 the Internet Broadband cost was representing 19,65% of the medium income.

In my point of view, despite the government's performance the country is not yet prepared to compete in the global market. My experience as a player in the market allows me to point out three major constrains that should be evaluated and measured through research:

1. IT enterprises have a limited market due to major role that government corporation plays in the value chain
2. The National IT infrastructure was privatized for 50 years in the late 1990s  to a foreign company. The present government could only minimize the impact by reducing the award to 25 years. But the company has made investments in the IT infrastructure covering all the islands with a communication network (fixed lines, broadband and wi-fi). Still the company operates with focus on financial rewards and maintains a higher access cost for consumers and companies.
3. A lack of an innovational environment delays the evolution of critical brain mass. IT entrepreneurs don't have access to seed capital, copyright laws are not effective and national policy is focused on the public sector.

However, countries compete with each other and those who are in a better shape to foster their own wealth and take advantage of their own set of infrastructure, with broadband connection and readiness to innovate, will be better positioned in the future.

In defiance of all major questions, ICT represents a window of opportunity for Cape Verde which should be able to consolidate present achievements and effectively lead innovation in Africa.

Source:
Schneider Gary, 2011. Electronic Commerce 9th Edition. Course Technology, Cengage Learning
International Telecomunication Union
International Human Indicators