Adverse Effects of E-Commerce

Abstract

E-commerce is the fastest growing industry worldwide and is one of the most rapidly evolving areas of national and international trade. The Internet has become an incredibly powerful tool for conducting business electronically. Companies have taken the proactive approach and are jumping on the new way to conduct business. E-commerce enables organizational change and helps organizations to conduct business with improved efficiencies and productivity. E-commerce is credited with empowering employees and knowledge workers, by giving them easy access to virtually unlimited information. E-commerce technologies have helped nations to accelerate their economic growth and to provide more opportunities for the businesses to grow. Meanwhile, it has also created many challenges and adverse effects, such as concerns over privacy, consumer protection, and security of credit card purchases, displacement of workers (especially low-status ones), and is charged with having a negative impact on quality of work life. This chapter describes the various adverse effects that have accompanied the advent of the Internet and e-commerce revolution.