An examination of mobile banking and mobile payments: building adoption as experience goods?

This paper examines consumer adoption of mobile banking and mobile payments using the experience goods and learning by doing constructs as a framework to better understand adoption patterns in the United States and how these may differ in other world markets. Consumer experience and familiarity with mobile devices is considered along with three relatively new communication technologies – SMS text messaging, wireless Internet access, and near field communication (NFC) – that are making important contributions to mobile financial services. Online banking and contactless payments — and consumers’ experience with them — are also studied as “building blocks” to mobile financial services. Furthermore, this analysis considers other factors that are affecting adoption patterns, including financial inclusion opportunities, data security problems, and coordination issues. Together, the building blocks and these other factors will influence how markets for mobile financial services develop.

A prototype mobile money implementation in Nigeria

Researchers have shown that majority of the populace in the developing nations are rural dwellers that do not have access to basic financial services and are poor. This class of people are peasant farmers and petty traders who rely mostly on remittances from their wards and relations in major cities and abroad to meet their financial obligations at home. The methods of remittances are encumbered with challenges. Mobile money is a tool that allows individuals to make financial transactions using mobile cell phones. Nigeria is one of the fastest growing telecoms nations of the world and the adoption of mobile money will help a great deal to solve the problems associated with remittances. In this paper, we present a short messages services (SMS) and unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) implementation of mobile money implementation in Nigeria modelled using Django and Python as the programming language, MySQL as the data store and Apache hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) as the Web server. The system made comparative analysis with M-PESA implementation in Kenya: the first mobile money implantation in Africa. Furthermore, the system was tested among a selected few of the populace to evaluate the usability of the design. Findings revealed that the prototype implementation is user-friendly and can be used by all without many problems except for the illiterate populace; hence, the need to have a combined bank and agent-based implementation. This approach will help with time to reduce the number of unbanked populace, which is currently at 80%

Reliability, availability and security of wireless networks in the community

Wireless networking increases the flexibility in the home, work place and community to connect to the Internet without being tied to a single location. Wireless networking has rapidly increased in popularity over recent years. There has also been a change in the use of the internet by users. Home users have embraced wireless technology and businesses see it as having a great impact on their operational efficiency. Both home users and industry are sending increasingly sensitive information through these wireless networks as online delivery of banking, commercial and governmental services becomes more widespread. However undeniable the benefits of wireless networking are, there are additional risks that do not exist in wired networks. It is imperative that adequate assessment and management of risk is undertaken by businesses and home users. This paper reviews wireless network protocols, investigates issues of reliability, availability and security when using wireless networks. The paper, by use of a case study, illustrates the issues and importance of implementing secured wireless networks, and shows the significance of the issue. The paper presents a discussion of the case study and a set of recommendations to mitigate the threat

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TechNews digests: Jan - Nov 2008

TechNews is a technology, news and analysis service aimed at anyone in the education sector keen to stay informed about technology developments, trends and issues. TechNews focuses on emerging technologies and other technology news. TechNews service : digests september 2004 till May 2010 Analysis pieces and News combined publish every 2 to 3 month

ITERL: A Wireless Adaptive System for Efficient Road Lighting

This work presents the development and construction of an adaptive street lighting system that improves safety at intersections, which is the result of applying low-power Internet of Things (IoT) techniques to intelligent transportation systems. A set of wireless sensor nodes using the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.15.4 standard with additional internet protocol (IP) connectivity measures both ambient conditions and vehicle transit. These measurements are sent to a coordinator node that collects and passes them to a local controller, which then makes decisions leading to the streetlight being turned on and its illumination level controlled. Streetlights are autonomous, powered by photovoltaic energy, and wirelessly connected, achieving a high degree of energy efficiency. Relevant data are also sent to the highway conservation center, allowing it to maintain up-to-date information for the system, enabling preventive maintenance.Consejería de Fomento y Vivienda Junta de Andalucía G-GI3002 / IDIOFondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional G-GI3002 / IDI

Wireless ICS Training Platform

Indiana University - Purdue University IndianapolisEssential public services, such as Electric, Water and Gas Utilities, are becoming increasingly reliant on network connected devices to control their processes. Wireless control systems are becoming more common in distributed systems, since they offer many advantages over hard wired alternatives. While cyber physical systems such as PLCs offer many advantages, they are also vulnerable to cyber-attacks. Military force readiness for defense of critical infrastructure against cyber-attacks requires state of the industry industrial control systems for cyber security training. A remote terminal unit using broad spectrum radio was integrated into an existing Water Treatment Plant SCADA system and provided to the US Army for training.Electrical Engineering Technolog

Risks of identity theft: Can the market protect the payment system?

Identity theft has been a feature of financial markets for as long as alternatives have existed to cash transactions. But identity theft has recently occurred on a much larger scale. Data breaches often involve the apparent loss or acknowledged theft of the personal identifying information of thousands--or millions--of people. ; Identity theft poses risks, not only to individuals, but to the integrity and efficiency of the payment system--the policies, procedures, and technology that transfer information for authenticating and settling payments among participants. Identity theft can cause a loss of confidence in the security of certain payment methods and an unwillingness to use them. Markets can cease operating or switch to less efficient payment methods. Either represents a loss of efficiency for the economy. ; Schreft looks at the nature of identity theft today and the factors underlying its mounting risks. She also explores whether markets are able to limit the risks identity theft poses to the payment system.Identity theft ; Payment systems

Electronic security - risk mitigation in financial transactions : public policy issues

This paper builds on a previous series of papers (see Claessens, Glaessner, and Klingebiel, 2001, 2002) that identified electronic security as a key component to the delivery of electronic finance benefits. This paper and its technical annexes (available separately at http://www1.worldbank.org/finance/) identify and discuss seven key pillars necessary to fostering a secure electronic environment. Hence, it is intended for those formulating broad policies in the area of electronic security and those working with financial services providers (for example, executives and management). The detailed annexes of this paper are especially relevant for chief information and security officers responsible for establishing layered security. First, this paper provides definitions of electronic finance and electronic security and explains why these issues deserve attention. Next, it presents a picture of the burgeoning global electronic security industry. Then it develops a risk-management framework for understanding the risks and tradeoffs inherent in the electronic security infrastructure. It also provides examples of tradeoffs that may arise with respect to technological innovation, privacy, quality of service, and security in designing an electronic security policy framework. Finally, it outlines issues in seven interrelated areas that often need attention in building an adequate electronic security infrastructure. These are: 1) The legal framework and enforcement. 2) Electronic security of payment systems. 3) Supervision and prevention challenges. 4) The role of private insurance as an essential monitoring mechanism. 5) Certification, standards, and the role of the public and private sectors. 6) Improving the accuracy of information on electronic security incidents and creating better arrangements for sharing this information. 7) Improving overall education on these issues as a key to enhancing prevention.Knowledge Economy,Labor Policies,International Terrorism&Counterterrorism,Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Banks&Banking Reform,Education for the Knowledge Economy,Knowledge Economy,Banks&Banking Reform,International Terrorism&Counterterrorism,Governance Indicators