E-business security strategies for SMEs

The major barriers to the Implementation of electronic commerce by businesses globally arc well understood. These comprise security and pnvacy issues, the lack of established regulations governing commercial behaviour and liability, and the lack of universally accepted standards. In this article. we focus on the security concerns of Australian SMEs. Medium, and especially small, enterprises are hindered in the implementation of communications security technology by a lack of expertize and a poor understandmg of the services and resources available to them. As a response to this situation, we examme the facilities avallable to Australian SMEs which help them to make reasonable e- secunty decisions as part of an overall e-busmess strategy. We demonstrate that there are sufficient resources at appropnate levels of availability to enable small and medium Australian enterprises to implement communicatlons security effectively.<br /

Property as Control: The Case of Information

If heath policy makers\u27 wishes come true, by the end of the current decade the paper charts in which most of our medical information is currently recorded will be replaced by networked electronic health records ( EHRs ).[...] Like all computerized records, networked EHRs are difficult to secure, and the information in EHRs is both particularly sensitive and particularly valuable for commercial purposes. Sadly, the existing federal statute meant to address this problem, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 ( HIPAA ), is probably inadequate to the task.[...] Health law, privacy, and intellectual property scholars have all suggested that the river of information created by integrated, networked EHRs and other data systems must somehow be controlled, and many of these scholars have considered whether property might provide such control.[...] The Article\u27s principal thesis is that arguments over the control of rights in personal information test contemporary understandings of what property is and reveal fault lines in modern property theory. If property rights exist at all in dephysicalized, digitized information, those rights are unlikely to be consolidated in a single person, to operate in rem, to grant owners significant powers to exclude, or to be standardized--qualities that, in the eyes of some, are required of true property interests. Claims of ownership to personal information also raise questions about whether property is the right rhetorical frame in which to consider the problem of information that is deeply connected to people\u27s selves. Finally, propertization claims assume a closer connection between property and control than is either realistic or desirable in an interconnected world. It is likely that, at the end of the day, individuals will as a matter of policy be granted some rights to control some of their personal information, but those rights will not follow from anything in property\u27s nature. Part I introduces the control issues raised by EHRs specifically and by the collection of personal information more generally, and then examines the arguments for using property as a device to control information.[...] Part II explores the connection between the loss of control over information and concerns about the self. It questions whether property is the best frame in which to talk about medical and other personal information, i.e., whether, rhetorically, we should treat information about the self as a commodity. It questions also whether we can avoid a property frame.[...] Part III returns to the specific policy problems presented by EHRs and by personal information. A workable EHR policy will take account of a wide variety of values, issues, and interests. Incentives must be created to facilitate EHR adoption, standards must be set to insure interoperability, malpractice rules must be adjusted to accommodate new practices (not to mention new mistakes), and procedures must be developed to enable use of EHR data for public health purposes.[...] A workable policy for EHRs and for personal information will no doubt provide individuals some control rights. These rights might look, in the eyes of some, like property rights. But if control rights are granted, it will not be because property demands them, but because other considerations of health and public policy do. All this raises the question of when and whether property might ever provide the control that advocates of information-as-property desire. In a world of de-physicalization and digitization, ownership may not provide the kind of power that old-fashioned property rhetoric invokes. This state of affairs is not necessarily one to be lamented. The question of how power and control over information will be apportioned involves hard choices. But because property theory is itself deeply divided over the extent to which property provides control, property itself cannot determine how these choices should be made. Property may never have actually given owners as much control as the new adherents of property in information envision. Even if it did, in a world of increasing interconnection, it may be good to be reminded that power and control are themselves always shared

Being and becoming a specialist public health nurse: net weaving in homeless health care

In this study, systematic reflection in professional practice is seen as a dynamic process towards socio-political action, negating a navel-gazing critique. Positioned within nursing, the pioneering narrative inquiry approach will be highly valuable in medicine, education and other health fields. When I embarked on this study, research to guide me in homeless health care was limited and there is, even yet, insufficient evidence to demonstrate the effectiveness of advanced nursing practice in England particularly with homeless people. Through its reflexive narrative nature that research gap is addressed in a profound journey that illuminates my transformation over a three year period of being and becoming a Specialist Public Health Nurse (homelessness). The methodology draws dynamically on an eclectic, philosophical framework which includes reflective practice/guidance, narrative inquiry, hermeneutics, aesthetics, critical social science theory, storytelling, performance-ethnography and ancient wisdom. The Six Dialogical Movements (Johns, 2009) provides coherence to the twenty-one practice experiences that adequately marked my transformation towards my practice vision. I used the Being Available Template (Johns, 2009) as a reflexive framework which became the metaphoric net of my practice, showing where and how homeless people fall through the net of care, and my role in weaving a stronger net. I also drew on the work of Belenky et al's (1986) voice perspectives to show empowerment in my specialist role. Within the narrative, each story illuminates complexity and brings new knowledge about homeless health care. The study tangibly links childhood trauma to adult homelessness; it illuminates suffering in homelessness, showing where and how mainstream health professionals contribute to suffering when they do not grasp their role within the net, perpetuating homelessness. Appreciating precarious engagement in four quadrants: health services, homeless services, the homeless person and my SPHN role, is a concept that illuminates the precariousness of the net. The study concludes with a SPHN Homeless Health Care Model. Towards an ensuing social action through dialogue, I use the term 'audiencing' rather than transferability of findings. Hearing stories from 'street to boardroom' - making the invisible visible - has been profound in health services as evidenced in the narrative

The internet: a framework for understanding ethical issues.

The impact and influence of the Internet as a communications medium cannot be overstated. It has had a profound effect on economic, political, and other social infrastructures, and has introduced ways of communicating which have transformed social relationships. The Internet has opened up information exchange on a global scale, offering enormous opportunities and advantages to an hitherto unknown degree. The Internet has also raised a number of serious, and urgent, ethical challenges. The discussions and debate surrounding ethical issues such as trust, security and privacy, amongst others, conducted at all levels (international, government, academia and the popular press) in themselves are evidence of the complexity of the problem of Internet ethics. The research unravels some of the complexity and muddle of Internet ethics, with the objective of providing a foundation for further research. This thesis offers four perspectives on the problems of Internet ethics: technical, conceptual, regulatory and ethical. These different viewpoints are not only useful in drawing out insights concerning the ethical framework of the Internet, they also provide leverage for the analysis of pertinent issues. The work in this thesis thus offers a framework for understanding, and analysis, which can be developed and used in continuing investigations. The research is a combination of theory and practice - both informing each other. The approach taken arose from the author's direct involvement in many of the expert discussions and debates which (together with the literature), identified a need for foundational work. In-depth work with a number of specialised groups has provided the practical backdrop, and grounding to this research - published results appear as Appendices

Washington University Magazine, Summer 1991

https://digitalcommons.wustl.edu/ad_wumag/1115/thumbnail.jp

Politics and public opinion in China: the impact of the Internet, 1993-2003

This dissertation is to provide empirical evidence as well as in-depth discussions to reflect the theme of new technologies like the Internet and its impact and implications on the political systems and public opinion in the Chinese context. It is the premise that technology can transform the mode of political communication and that this in turn can change the nature of political participation, as well as the milieu in which political discussions are made. This project concludes that the Internet has not at this stage fundamentally transformed China's political system, let alone caused a sudden political regime collapse and engendered a sweeping democratisation process. The Internet is, however, expanding people's minds, facilitating public discourse, and pushing for more transparent and accountable governance. In other words, the Chinese government is argued as not being as much in control of public debates on the Internet as it is of debates in other forms of media channels; the government cannot control and manipulate public opinion as much as it has traditionally done. This work has contributed to a more systematic picture of public opinion on political issues with documented examples, thanks to the Internet. Besides, this research has shed light on how to measure the impact of the Internet upon political debates, and to document the political impact of the Internet. Moreover, this dissertation highlights a usually neglected phenomenon that researching the political change or transformation in China can also be conducted form different aspects like the impact of Information Communication Technologies on its political system. The conventional approaches may be enriched thanks to the advent of new technologies in the increasingly networked, globalised and marketised world

Politics and public opinion in China : the impact of the Internet, 1993-2003

This dissertation is to provide empirical evidence as well as in-depth discussions to reflect the theme of new technologies like the Internet and its impact and implications on the political systems and public opinion in the Chinese context. It is the premise that technology can transform the mode of political communication and that this in turn can change the nature of political participation, as well as the milieu in which political discussions are made. This project concludes that the Internet has not at this stage fundamentally transformed China's political system, let alone caused a sudden political regime collapse and engendered a sweeping democratisation process. The Internet is, however, expanding people's minds, facilitating public discourse, and pushing for more transparent and accountable governance. In other words, the Chinese government is argued as not being as much in control of public debates on the Internet as it is of debates in other forms of media channels; the government cannot control and manipulate public opinion as much as it has traditionally done. This work has contributed to a more systematic picture of public opinion on political issues with documented examples, thanks to the Internet. Besides, this research has shed light on how to measure the impact of the Internet upon political debates, and to document the political impact of the Internet. Moreover, this dissertation highlights a usually neglected phenomenon that researching the political change or transformation in China can also be conducted form different aspects like the impact of Information Communication Technologies on its political system. The conventional approaches may be enriched thanks to the advent of new technologies in the increasingly networked, globalised and marketised world.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceChiang Ching-kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange (CCFISE)GBUnited Kingdo

Miners, Vigilantes & Cattlemen: Overcoming Free Rider Problems in the Private Provision of Law

Law is a good like food, insurance, or housing. Like other goods, it can and often should be provided by private entities. Yet law is usually regarded as the quintessential public good, so obviously public in nature that we need not even discuss its provision by anyone but the State. As Bruce Benson observed [a]nyone who would even question the \u27fact\u27 that law and order are necessary functions of government is likely to be considered a ridiculous, uninformed radical by most observers. Even William Landes and Richard Posner, hardly apologists for the State, have concluded that law often must be publicly provided. Ultimately, the arguments for public provision of law turn on one aspect or another of the free rider problem. In essence this problem arises because it is difficult to exclude those who refuse to pay from the consumption of law. Thus, if you and I agreed to purchase rule of law services from a private firm, even those of our neighbors who refused to contribute a dime would reap some of the benefits of our services if only because they would no longer need to worry about spillover violence from our less peaceful, nonlegal methods of settling disputes. Similarly, rules produced by our litigation could be used by others without payment. The net result could be too little law since many would opt to ride for free on the efforts of others. Despite this seeming consensus on law\u27s public nature, Americans frequently turn to private sources for law. During the development of the American West, private citizens often undertook to privately provide both rules and enforcement mechanisms where governmental systems were absent or ineffective. Some of these examples, like the placer mining districts, Montana cattlemen, and Montana vigilantes, provide positive lessons. Others, like the 1856 San Francisco vigilance committee and Wyoming cattlemen\u27s invasion of Johnson County, provide negative lessons. These experiences with privately produced law answer questions about how some people overcame free rider problems in privately providing law and illustrate how to avoid substituting private for public monopolies. These lessons provide us with guidelines for shifting provision of at least some law provision functions of government to private entities. Briefly, the Western experiences with privately produced, customary law suggest the following are important to successfully overcoming the free rider problems in private provision of law: First, customary legal systems work best when they enforce reasonably well defined rights generally recognized in the community as just. Second, private legal systems flourish spontaneously when they are given space to grow, making the ability to opt out of any State system crucial to their development. Third, removing distortions blocking private law, including pricing State legal institutions at their true costs, can significantly assist the growth of customary legal institutions. Fourth, customary law requires a set of skills and knowledge to succeed. Fostering these skills and disseminating this knowledge can enhance these skills. Finally, customary systems that reward treating others with respect are more likely to succeed. I examine several case studies of non-state legal systems: Miners\u27 law in California, Montana, and the Dakota Black Hills; two prominent vigilante movements in San Francisco in 1856 and Montana in 1863-64; and conflicts between cattlemen and settlers in the 1880s-1890s in Wyoming and Montana. I examine the lessons from Part II on how private law production can be enhanced in Part III and suggest how those principles can be applied today to enable privately produced law to develop regarding the Internet, in Part IV. I also briefly examine the recent phenomenon of common law courts and conclude they do not meet the requirements for successful development of private law