Introduction To Security And Privacy Issues

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

E-Commerce Strategy

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E-Commerce Strategy

Introduction to security and privacy issues in DU

With the advent of technological developments, almost all the organizations have become technologically savvy and they are ensuring that they manage their business operations by making effective use of the latest IT systems. Even the growth of Internet has eased the business transactions process and communication among dispersed locations has become convenient (Null & Lobur, 2012). Since most of the vital information related to business are stored in these IT systems, they are vulnerable to various threats such as viruses and hackers and have to take extra security measures for dealing with the privacy issues.

For all companies, the organizational information is an intellectual capital or asset which has to be protected by implementing the latest security systems. Hence, many experts of IT world have developed information security software which can be installed with ease and maintenance of it is done by the service providers (Wang, 2011). At DU, the main information related content will be about the employees, company strategies and plans along with detailed business operational data such as suppliers, customers, investors, distributors and competitors.

The company has hired Chief Security Officer (CFO) as a consultant to help them in upgrading its IT system framework so that the information is secured. According to Shirtz and Elovici (2011), information security is the information protection parameters for securing the data from being misused by people either from inside or outside of the organization. The main responsibilities of the expert is to first evaluate the security level of existing system and recommend the desired security system in compliance with the business requirements.

When the new system is being installed, the professional has to train the company’s IT department people to learn the system process and guide them about the possible problems that can be encountered during its functioning. Since the hackers employ various strategies for getting access to the company’s data and there are new viruses that are attacking the systems, it is the responsibility of CSO to ensure that the security system is updated on frequent intervals.

Plan for enhancing the level of security at DU

Since people and technology are the two lines of defenses that can impose threat to the organization, some preventive measures in the form of information security policies will be implemented within the business operations. In order to ensure that there is effective first line of defense, three changes will be made; one is the Personal Authentication Password (PAP), second is biometrics and third is encryption.

With PAP, the employees will be allowed to access only relevant information about the company and their work so that the privacy is well-maintained. Biometrics in the form of voice will ensure that the confidential information is accessed by only authorized people. Finally, encryption will ensure that the intended message is communicated solely to the desired recipient and anyone stealing the data will be unable to understand the message. Similarly, to protect the technology from being attacked, firewalls will be installed so that the data can be monitored by the IT specialists. With the help of firewalls, it will be ensured that the intellectual asset of the company remains protected and nobody can misuse it.

Porter’s Five Forces Analysis of IT sector

The IT sector is competitive and the players within the industry have to ensure that they offer the latest and highly innovative products to the customers. Apple and Microsoft are the leading corporations that have been dominating the world of technology for many years and working in these organizations will definitely help a new employee to gain valuable experience about the field. In order to assess the dynamics of IT sector, Porter’s Five Forces Model has been analyzed so that there is clarity about the characteristics of the technological business environment (Wang, 2011).

Rivalry among competitors

The rivalry among IT firms is strong as the customers are looking forward for unique, updated and latest product and service offerings. Microsoft has been ranked as number one in terms of software development initiatives and Apple is leading the smartphone industry by excelling in enhancing the user’s experience. However, both companies also manufacture computers, laptops and other accessories but they excel in their respective markets. The other competing firms within this industry are Dell, Acer, HP, Sony and many more.

Threat of new entrants

Since there is huge potential for disruptive technologies and e-commerce has become the popular trend, the threat of new entrants is low. However, it is moderate for those firms who are considering development of IT systems as they require sufficient cost for initial investment.

Bargaining power of suppliers

Both Microsoft and Apple have developed strong backward vertical integration with their suppliers so that they don’t have to face any problems regarding the supplies of their raw materials. As most of the suppliers are contended with their agreements, the bargaining power of suppliers is relatively moderate.

Bargaining power of buyers

The bargaining power of buyers is low as there is minimal switching cost for individual buyers. However, for the corporations, the switching cost is high so they can influence the pricing of Microsoft products. On the contrary, bargaining power of buyers is moderate for Apple.

Threat of substitute products

There is high threat of substitute products within IT sector as the customers can easily find various alternative choices for iPhone, Personal Computers, Software, Hardware and other accessories.

Porter’s Generic Strategies employed in Apple and Microsoft

Apple has utilized Porter’s differentiation generic strategy as it tries to present the customers with the most innovative and unique product offerings. Microsoft has been using the cost leadership strategy for many years but after the increase in the number of competitions it had to shift to differentiation strategy. As the IT sector is marked by breakthrough innovations and technological advancements, the firms operating with the sector have to remain well-informed about the changes in customer’s demands and patterns so that they can present them with the superior quality and excellent product and service offerings at a continuous pace.

Analysis of Business Driven Start-up case

With the help of Internet and easy to use IT systems, starting up businesses at an early career stage is an interesting and captivating work. The start-up business idea that is gaining huge appreciation in the market is the personalized apparel services. Since people have less time available to buy clothes from physical stores, they are making their purchases online from digital stores. On various social networking sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, many entrepreneurs have created their profile pages and conducting businesses in a successful way.

The key advantages available for new online businesses is that there is very minimum amount of start-up cost and reaching a mass target market can be done quickly and efficiently. However, the drawbacks of this e-commerce strategy are that there is intense competition for attracting the desired audience and the profit margins have to be kept low so that the break-even objectives are effectively attained.

The three successful college start-up businesses are Adventure Life, GoGrossCampus and Give Life are excellent examples of starting ventures at an early age. Adventure Life is run by Brian Morgan who started this company in 1998 with the aim of providing excellent tourism facilities to the customers. The founder was able to earn good amount of sales after one year of entry in the market ("Brian Morgan, founder of Adventure Life", 2010). Similarly, GoGrossCampus which is an online game was started by a group of students studying at University of Yale. This game was started in 2007 by the parent company GXStudios and the start-up successfully raised $1 million for the venture ("GXStudios, University of Yale", 2009).

Ben Lewis is the entrepreneur who developed the product ‘Give Life’ at the age of ten. The product was introduced in the market to provide a valuable service to the community and there are four colored bottles (each one showing where the money will be sent for charity purpose) ("Give Water, University of Pennsylvania", 2009). The success of these three businesses is driven by their ability to identify the unmet need of the customers and reaching them by making proper use of the available mediums.

The benefits of starting the business in college years are that it allows an individual to assess the challenges that will be encountered in the real world. This stage provides an opportunity to learn about the risks that have to be taken account of in the real world and also gain first-hand practical knowledge for managing the businesses efficiently in the long-run. Hence, the main challenge that will be encountered in the online apparel business is the presence of a large number of competitors and sales will start after creating distinctive position in the market.

Conclusion

As the technological advancements continue to take place at an accelerating pace in the business environment, the organizations will have to ensure that they implement the latest IT systems with enhanced security measures. It is imperative for the companies to keep a strong balance between the business operations and IT system so that the valuable information of the company remains protected. Since there are many opportunities available in the market due to openness on Internet mediums, the organizations have to make effective use of the feasible options.

With the help of Internet and supporting technologies, people can easily start their businesses even at early age of ten. It is better to think about initiating start-up businesses in college days so that experience about the respective industry can be effectively gained and utilized.