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International Bulletin of Business Administration ISSN: 1451-243X Issue 12 (2011) EuroJournals, Inc. 2011 http://www.eurojournals.com/IBBA.

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E-Business: Crimes & Ethics


Hani Jazza Irtaimeh Business Administration Department Faculty of Finance & Business Administration World Islamic Science and Education University, Amman - Jordan E-mail: hani.irtaimeh@yahoo.com Suleman Ibrahim Shelash Al-Hawary Business Administration Department Faculty of Finance & Business Administration Al al-Bayt University, AlMafraq - Jordan E-mail: Dr_sliman73@aabu.edu.jo Abstract E-business is one of the aspects of E-commerce. The E-business with vast reach of web connects critical business with its critical constituencies. The internet enhances and quickens modern business procedure and structure create sustainable computer mediated relationship, The E-business can be classified as, E-business in the organization, Business to Business dealings and Business-to-customer transactions. But side by side the E-business crime is also growing through a minimal group of business who are exploiting and abusing the system for their personal gains and advantage. The various types of electronic crimes are service theft, money theft, computer viruses, programme data theft, programme damage, data destruction, programme copying, data alteration, hacking violation of privacy. The very names of the criminal activity devotes what they are aimed at. This is done through getting entry into the system unauthorized, manipulating computer data for money theft etc, sueak out stored valuables information unauthorized and at worst erase data through virus. The control methods must be used to preserve the effectively and sanctity of the system. The business man must accept their responsibility to preserve the system and properly perform their role. There is need for a code of conduct for computer professionals. It is essential to have business crime laws in India which should be taken seriously and followed in their spirit. Another way to confront the E-business problems is to consider the basic ethical issues which deal with vulnerability of human being vis--vis information system. These issues are privacy, accuracy. property and accessibility. Social contract should be developed to keep the sanctity of information. The objective in developing Ebusiness must aim at protection of privacy defense against business crimes, malfunctions and misuse be analyzed and stopped. This is essential for development and betterment of business, industry, society country as a whole and smooth advancement of entire world community.

Keywords: E-business, Crimes, Ethics.

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Introduction
In business timely and faster communication , information plays a very important , significant and substantial role. A vast and diverse variety of information required for a business are organized amassed into the Management Information System (MIS). The management information system consists of interconnected sub-systems. These subsystems provide the necessary information to stay competitive. The computer is an electronic means that is used to gather, organize, analyze, interpret and communicative vast volume of informations with fast and quick speed. The use of computers increased the movements of business and quickened it globalization and increased competition. The Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) made faster, secured and correct transfer of documents around the globe less difficult and treasure the computers make a paperless working system possible. If the computer of a businessman is linked with his customers and suppliers all the transactions can be accomplished electronically. E-business is one of the aspects of E-commerce. "According to International Business Machines (IBM) E-business is a secure, flexible and integrated approach to deliver differentiated business value by combining the system and process that run core business functions which makes simplicity and reach possible reality by Internet Technology." E-business combines the traditional information systems with the vast reach of the web and connect critical business systems directly to critical business constituencies like customers, employees and suppliers through Internet, Extranet and through the Web. It is about using the convenience, availability and reach globally to enhance the existing business or to create new virtual business. Modern business organizations are beginning organize, standardize and stabilize the services offered and make them automatic order to create and maintain sustainable computer mediated relationships throughout and obtain the E-business life cycle. The E-business can be classified as follows: I. E-Business in the Organization: In this the internet uses internet standards for electronic communication. The persons on the internet can see the organization's specific web sites. Due to secretive and security measures outsiders can not have peep into and access to the organization's internet web sites. The internet web sites permit the employees to obtain information and place orders online. It depends on the security policies of the organization whether the persons may be permitted to connect over the internet through virtual private network to the internet using encryption lines and strong authentication for identification purposes. II. Business- To-Business Dealings: It take place over the Extranet. The extranet consists of 2 internets connected through the internet and the two organizations are permitted to see and interchange each others confidential data. In the normal course only that much informations as is necessary for the conduct business place made available to the organization over the extra net. It has existed long before the internet came into use. Some organizations have had used private networks to deal with their business partners. But maintaining or private network proved more expensive to the organizations. Cost of usage of B-2-B solutions through the internet have come down. III. Business-To-Customer Transactions: The media or internet has made selling of goods and services to the innumerable customer who are spread all over the glob a practical preposition. Through this the business organizations establish virtual shops with whosoever visits their web sites and after them their goods and services. E-business is a super set of business activities. The important aspects of E-business are Edirectories, E-engineering, E-Franchising, E-gambling, E-learning, E-operational resource management, E-supply, E-auctioning, E-mailing, E-banking, E-marketing and E-trading. E-Business E-business crime is a growing threat and entire business world which is to the businessman nominal caused by the irresponsible actions of a minority of businessman. Who are abusing the advantages of the widespread use of electronic devices in the business world. It in essence, presents a challenge to the 25

security of E-business computer based information systems and necessities development of effective system controls. The E-business crime involves theft of money. services. programs and data, destruction of data and programs through computer viruses, Malicious access, violation of privacy and violation of international law of business. The various types of E-business crimes are as under: 1. Service Theft The use of computer hardware or software for one's own benefit may be for business purposes called as service theft in the E-business. 2. Programme Copying This is another way of programme theft in trade and commerce In this crime involving the unauthorized copying of business software by the user firms or competing software companies and they have been widely doing such type activities. 3. Data Alteration In the crime some changes in business data allow businessman to derive significant advantages and which may be tangible or intangible or both. Some cases involve changes in credit information records which could facilitate the theft of money referred to in the records and accounts of business activities. 4. Hacking It is the unauthorized and malicious access and use of computer systems in E-business. One important issue in relation to hacking is the problem of what to do when a hacker gets access to a computer system, reads some files, but neither steals nor damages anything. This situation is becoming increasingly common in the E-business crime. It is an alarming disadvantage in business which the businessman remains unaware and suspicious for a lone time. 5. Violation of Privacy A consist fear relating to E-business is that the computer can facilitate invasions of privacy of the businessmen. With the growing awareness of the dangers that E-business crime poses to businessmen, it can be anticipated that invasions of privacy must be punished through the use of E-business crime laws. From the above mentioned E-business crimes it is obvious that computer base MIS are vulnerable and exposed to many types of E-business crimes by business criminal and users. The widespread distribution of inter connected networks of computers have significantly increased the possibility of the E-business crime. Even the proliferation of the microcomputers in business provides new opportunities for E-business crime. Thus E-business and E-business criminals present a major challenge to MIS developers. Designing effective MIS and E-business control has now become a vitally important and imperative assignment. End users, information system developers and IS auditors must use many of the control methods to build, operate and maintain secure E-business systems. E. Business Ethics The above mentioned E-business crimes compel the end users to own responsibility to do something effective about the E-business crimes and other abuses of information technology power. Here the Ebusiness, ethics becomes on issue. To stop the E-business crimes the end users should accept their responsibilities and properly perform their roll', as the human resources that are vital to any computer based information system. There is a need of a code of conduct for computer professionals and other related LT. devices. The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) has its code of conduct that outlines the ethical considerations inherent in the responsibilities of professionals in the E-business. The ACM code provides general guidelines for ethical conduct in the development and operation of E26

business the end. Users and E-business professionals can follow the guidelines which are basically moral dictates, mentioned below: 1. Acting with integrity, 1. Increasing their competence, 2. Setting high standards of conduct 3. Accepting responsibility for their work, and 4. Advancing the health, privacy and welfare of IS to increase its security. It should be appreciated that the above mentioned codes of conduct are guidelines and not laws. Therefore, it is immediately essential to frame and implement detailed E-business crime laws in India. The end users and the IT professionals should take the proposed laws seriously. Truly ethical behaviour would involve following the spirit and not just the letters of the provisions in these laws. Thus, business organizations should establish policies and businessman should act in a cooperative and mutually beneficial spirit of ethical responsibility in regard to it. Another way to confront the E-business problems is to consider the basic ethical issues that arise from the use of E-business information systems. There are basic ethical issues which deal with the vulnerability of human beings vis--vis information system. These issues are based on the concept that information forms the intellectual capital of individual and human beings. However, information systems can rob human beings of their intellectual capital like person can lose information without compensation and without their permission also person can also be denied access to information or exposed to erroneous information. These four ethical issues are the privacy, accuracy, property and acceptability. They are discussed below: 1. Privacy: What information is there about one's self or one's associations must a person reveal to others, under what conditions, and what safeguards exist therefore? What can people keep to themselves and be not forced to reveal the same to others and of required to reveal, to what the same it is to be communicated? 2. Accuracy: Who is responsible for the authenticity, fidelity, and accuracy of information? Similarly who is to be held accountable for errors in information imparted and how is the injured businessmen to be compensated? 3. Properly: Who owns information? To whom it justifiably belongs? What is the just and fair price for its exchange vital information is the sole and essence of success in business? Who owns the channels especially to airways. through which information is transmitted? Who should have access to this scarce resource and to whom it be allocated? 4. Accessibility: What information does businessmen or a business organization is entitled to obtain or have a right or a privilege to obtain and if so, under what conditions and with what safeguards? To execute the above mentioned ethical issues there is a need r the development of a social contract. In which E-business information systems will help ensure businessmen's right to fulfill human potential. In this social contract E-business I.S. should be designed to ensure accuracy and not invade a businessmen's privacy. The channels of information should be protected and information made accessible to avoid information illiteracy or deprivation. The E-business I.S. should be designed to protect businessmen's intellectual capital from unauthorized exploration and exposure, its loss or damage. In developing, protecting and enforcing the social contract the responsibility of E-business professionals becomes a must. The main objective in developing an E-business must include the protection of businessmen's privacy and the defense against the E-business crimes. The possible for misuse and malfunctions must be analyzed with regard to its impact on business organizations, businessmen, industry, society and country as a whole and advancement of entire world community.

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