Decision making on adoption of cloud computing in e-commerce using fuzzy TOPSIS

© 2017 IEEE. Cloud computing promises enhanced scalability, flexibility, and cost-efficiency. In practice, however, there are many uncertainties about the usage of cloud computing resources in the e-commerce context. As e-commerce is dependent on a reliable and secure online store, it is important for decision makers to adopt an optimal cloud computing mode (Such as SaaS, PaaS and IaaS). This study assesses the factors associated with cloud-based e-commerce based on TOE (technological, organizational, and environmental) framework using multi-criteria decision-making technique (Fuzzy TOPSIS). The results show that Fuzzy TOPSIS (Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution) approach proposes software-as-a-service (SaaS) as the best choice for e-commerce business

Critical Impact of Social Networks Infodemic on Defeating Coronavirus COVID-19 Pandemic: Twitter-Based Study and Research Directions

News creation and consumption has been changing since the advent of social media. An estimated 2.95 billion people in 2019 used social media worldwide. The widespread of the Coronavirus COVID-19 resulted with a tsunami of social media. Most platforms were used to transmit relevant news, guidelines and precautions to people. According to WHO, uncontrolled conspiracy theories and propaganda are spreading faster than the COVID-19 pandemic itself, creating an infodemic and thus causing psychological panic, misleading medical advises, and economic disruption. Accordingly, discussions have been initiated with the objective of moderating all COVID-19 communications, except those initiated from trusted sources such as the WHO and authorized governmental entities. This paper presents a large-scale study based on data mined from Twitter. Extensive analysis has been performed on approximately one million COVID-19 related tweets collected over a period of two months. Furthermore, the profiles of 288,000 users were analyzed including unique users profiles, meta-data and tweets context. The study noted various interesting conclusions including the critical impact of the (1) exploitation of the COVID-19 crisis to redirect readers to irrelevant topics and (2) widespread of unauthentic medical precautions and information. Further data analysis revealed the importance of using social networks in a global pandemic crisis by relying on credible users with variety of occupations, content developers and influencers in specific fields. In this context, several insights and findings have been provided while elaborating computing and non-computing implications and research directions for potential solutions and social networks management strategies during crisis periods.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figures, Journal Articl

Improving Co-Production Behavior and Citizenship Behavior of Client in Enterprise System Service: A View Based on Signaling Theory

In knowledge-intensive business service, the participation of clients is important to service providers to successfully deliver high-quality service. Our research discusses this topic in enterprise system (ES) service, where clients’ co-production behavior and citizenship behavior are critical because they need to provide specific business knowledge to vendors to develop a satisfactory ES. However, because clients are unaware of vendor’s competence and goodwill, the potential risk impedes them from performing such behaviors. As information asymmetry exists between vendors and clients, we adopt signaling theory to investigate how to improve clients’ co-production behavior and citizenship behavior. According to this theory, we consider vendor’s in-role and extra-role performance as the signal sent to clients, which influence clients’ trust in vendor’s competence and goodwill. This trust leads to co-production behavior and citizenship behavior as a consequence. The current study intends to conduct questionnaire survey among clients of a focal ES vendor. Expected contributions are specified at the end of this paper

Internet of Things for Sustainability: Perspectives in Privacy, Cybersecurity, and Future Trends

In the sustainability IoT, the cybersecurity risks to things, sensors, and monitoring systems are distinct from the conventional networking systems in many aspects. The interaction of sustainability IoT with the physical world phenomena (e.g., weather, climate, water, and oceans) is mostly not found in the modern information technology systems. Accordingly, actuation, the ability of these devices to make changes in real world based on sensing and monitoring, requires special consideration in terms of privacy and security. Moreover, the energy efficiency, safety, power, performance requirements of these device distinguish them from conventional computers systems. In this chapter, the cybersecurity approaches towards sustainability IoT are discussed in detail. The sustainability IoT risk categorization, risk mitigation goals, and implementation aspects are analyzed. The openness paradox and data dichotomy between privacy and sharing is analyzed. Accordingly, the IoT technology and security standard developments activities are highlighted. The perspectives on opportunities and challenges in IoT for sustainability are given. Finally, the chapter concludes with a discussion of sustainability IoT cybersecurity case studies

Persistent virtual identity in community networks: Impact to social capital value chains

Community networks are digital infrastructures designed to strengthen bonds and build social capital between members of a community, facilitating accomplishment of goals. As we consider how community network implementations can be improved, we recognize the potential that social translucence and activity notification introduces to other forms of CSCW. We investigate how the underlying notion of persistent virtual identity---established at logon---impacts user perception of community networks and their social capital production process. To approach this question, we introduce a design model that reconciles various computer-mediated communication research contributions with support for typical community network scenarios of use. Using this model, we perform an inspection on existing community network implementations. Based on the insight gained through this analysis, we introduce a generic prototype that allows survey of user reaction to community network design elements under differing conditions of persistent virtual identity implementation and usage motivation---the results frame a value-chain understanding of conceptual tradeoffs

Recognizing Patterns in Transmitted Signals for Identification Purposes

The ability to identify and authenticate entities in cyberspace such as users, computers, cell phones, smart cards, and radio frequency identification (RFID) tags is usually accomplished by having the entity demonstrate knowledge of a secret key. When the entity is portable and physically accessible, like an RFID tag, it can be difficult to secure given the memory, processing, and economic constraints. This work proposes to use unique patterns in the transmitted signals caused by manufacturing differences to identify and authenticate a wireless device such as an RFID tag. Both manufacturer identification and tag identification are performed on a population of 300 tags from three different manufacturers. A methodology to select features for identifying signals with high accuracy is developed and applied to passive RFID tags. The classifier algorithms K-Nearest Neighbors, Parzen Windows, and Support Vector Machines are investigated. The tag\u27s manufacturer can be identified with 99.93\% true positive rate. An individual tag is identified with 99.8\% accuracy, which is better than previously published work. Using a Hidden Markov Model with framed timing and power data, the tag manufacturer can be identified with 97.37\% accuracy and has a compact representation. An authentication system based on unique features of the signals is proposed assuming that the readers that interrogate the tags may be compromised by a malicious adversary. For RFID tags, a set of timing-only features can provide an accuracy of 97.22\%, which is better than previously published work, is easier to measure, and appears to be more stable than power features

Consumer behavior and counterfeit purchase in the Tanzanian mainland

The primary focus of the present study is to examine the influence of moral judgement, subjective norm and self-regulatory efficacy in predicting behavioural intention to purchase counterfeit products among Tanzanian consumers. This study also aims to examine the direct relationship between self-regulatory efficacy and purchase behaviour of counterfeit products. In addition, the present study also fills the gap in the intention-actual behaviour relationship by examining the moderating effect of idolatry on the relationship between consumers’ behavioural intention and purchase behaviour of counterfeit products. The present study also aims to examine to what extent intention to purchase counterfeit products contributes to the purchase behaviour of counterfeit products among Tanzanian consumers.It is an attempt to develop a conceptual framework for determining purchasing behaviour of counterfeit products in Tanzania. The aim is to provide adequate information to marketers on how to reap the expected benefits of sales as well as to facilitate prompt decision-making by the government through the execution and implementation of stringent regulations

Authentic Leadership Within Local Government: An Empirical Evaluation

This research study established the current issue of low authentic leadership in business as a known issue that has contributed to lower confidence in leadership throughout various organizations. The study aimed to investigate the relationship between authentic leadership and confidence in leadership in a medium to large size department of a local government located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. To achieve this aim, the researcher adopted a descriptive and diagnostic analytical approach. The sample of the study consisted of 207 participants, consisting of positions consistent with regular positions within local government. The researcher used two survey instruments to achieve the aim of the study. The first instrument was the Authentic Leadership Questionnaire, which consisted of 16 questions, and the second instrument was the Leadership Efficacy Questionnaire, which consisted of 22 items. The literature review, theoretical framework, and research methods established a foundation for answering the research questions To what extent, if any, is there a relationship between authentic leadership and confidence in overall organizational leadership within local government?” and “To what extent, if any, is there a difference in the relationship between authentic leadership assessment scores and lower confidence in leadership between direct supervisors and indirect supervisors within local government? Further analysis of the findings of the research could be expanded to better understand authentic leadership theory and the impact on the public sector, particularly local government

Some Agents are more Similar than Others:Customer Orientation of Frontline Robots and Employees

Purpose: The impact of frontline robots (FLRs) on customer orientation perceptions remains unclear. This is remarkable because customers may associate FLRs with standardization and cost-cutting, such that they may not fit firms that aim to be customer oriented. Design/methodology/approach: In four experiments, data are collected from customers interacting with frontline employees (FLEs) and FLRs in different settings. Findings: FLEs are perceived as more customer-oriented than FLRs due to higher competence and warmth evaluations. A relational interaction style attenuates the difference in perceived competence between FLRs and FLEs. These agents are also perceived as more similar in competence and warmth when FLRs participate in the customer journey's information and negotiation stages. Switching from FLE to FLR in the journey harms FLR evaluations. Practical implications: The authors recommend firms to place FLRs only in the negotiation stage or in both the information and negotiation stages of the customer journey. Still then customers should not transition from employees to robots (vice versa does no harm). Firms should ensure that FLRs utilize a relational style when interacting with customers for optimal effects. Originality/value: The authors bridge the FLR and sales/marketing literature by drawing on social cognition theory. The authors also identify the product categories for which customers are willing to negotiate with an FLR. Broadly speaking, this study’s findings underline that customers perceive robots as having agency (i.e. the mental capacity for acting with intentionality) and, just as humans, can be customer-oriented.</p

Pricing practices in digital markets: an abuse of dominance approach

Digital platforms have reshaped the world economic order. Competition laws around the world have required acclimatizing to developments occurring in digital platform markets with respect to new types of conduct being deemed anti-competitive by competition law enforcement bodies. Between 2016-2019, more than 30 competition agencies from around the world released reports regarding competition in the digital age. In the EU, the need to develop tools to assess abusive conduct by dominant digital platform firms led to the creation of the Digital Markets Act (DMA) in 2022 which is to act as an additional regulatory tool to Article 102 TFEU. Cases relating to the exploitative nature of the data collection policy of Meta/Facebook have been initiated in Germany and the UK. Data collection has also allowed price personalization to take place which has the capability of resembling first-degree price discrimination which can be harmful to consumers when there is no increase in total output. There has been minimal discussion on the occurrence of predatory pricing in online platform markets through cross-subsidization being facilitated due to the nature of two-sided online platforms. The thesis considers the role of competition law in the assessment of these. This thesis examines the occurrence of conduct that may resemble unfair pricing, unfair trading conditions, first-degree price discrimination, and predatory pricing which are prohibited under Article 102 TFEU. The thesis evaluates whether Article 102 TFEU can and should be used in such cases and tries to devise suitable remedies for certain digital platform market infringements by also considering the use of other relevant legislations such as the GDPR, Consumer Protection Directives, and the DMA. The thesis provides an evaluative contribution to the area of pricing-based abuse of dominance in digital platform markets