About 'cookies'
A couple of letters about "cookies" and Mr. Zatni Arbi gets free a Internet connection and Mr. de Vries gets marketing for his enterprise (Nov. 18, 1996). Who said this column is uninspiring?
A remark: Don't try to scan cookies coming in (a feature of Microsoft Explorer 3.0). You will be so busy denying them access that eventually, you will disable the feature and let the "cookies" roll unimpaired. Second: If you delete your "cookies" file, another one is sent to replace it. If Microsoft and Netscape want to make money on the Net, they had better stop sneaking into our computers. That does not help users' perception of the Net's security.
Security is what is hampering the takeoff of electronic commerce. I would only buy something through the Net if the business assumes responsibility for any unlawful charges to my credit card. Insurance companies would stress security in order to write a policy for a Net business.
Why should we use a credit card? They accept that piece of plastic I carry just because my bank has already screened me. But credit cards are dumb. Security technology exists and costs peanuts. Try eavesdropping on someone using a GSM mobile phone. GSM standard offers a PIN number, authentication and encryption. The GSM SIM card -- a microprocessor with eight kilobytes of memory -- stores a mathematical algorithm that encrypts voice and data transmissions and is virtually impossible to crack. Smart cards cost less than US$10 each if purchased in bulk. If banks load them up to a certain amount that I could spend, I would have the perfect Internet smart credit card.
Technical issues apart, there should be an organization -- a kind of "Better Net Business Bureau" -- which Net businesses should join. This organization would act as the watchdog of Net businesses. It would certify businesses, ensuring we get the goods, and would protect our electronic information. It would also broadcast a blacklist of Net businesses whose practices were not according to the rules laid down. Now, if there is a nebulous interest for not making the Net secure, that's another story.
OSVALDO COELHO
Bandung, West Java