Fraud is ongoing problem for e-commerce sites

Online fraud is continuing to cause problems for e-commerce sites and banks, according to new research from web authentication firm VeriSign. The company's Online Fraud Barometer report estimated that 11 percent of the online UK population had fallen victim to fraud in the past 12 months, with the average loss per individual coming to STG352. On a positive note, the report revealed a 12 percent increase in the number of people who did not suffer any immediate financial loss as a result of online ID fraud. VeriSign director Phil D'Angio said that e-commerce firms and banking institutions are implementing greater safeguards to try to prevent cybercriminals from stealing personal details. D'Angio said that by placing visible security measures on their sites, online firms can reassure consumers and auditors that they are taking sufficient steps to improve fraud prevention. For more on this story see V3.co.uk.

Retailers urged to embrace social media

Social media is creating multiple opportunities for retailers, such as establishing brand awareness and building brand image, according to a new study by research house IDC Retail Insights. "Social networks, blogs, price comparison websites and the likes can all be used by retailers of all kinds and sizes to attract and influence customers, to study demand patterns, to improve brand reputation and, finally, to provide customer support," said Ivano Ortis, research director at IDC Retail Insights. Social media, with the top ten social networks having more than 1.3 billion members, are also influencing consumer preferences by shaping their attitudes and behaviour, the study said. Retailers should establish a presence on social networks not only with the aim of attracting consumers to their websites or stores, but most importantly to gather useful information, in a non-intrusive way, on current and potential customers. Read the press release on IDC-RI.com.

Email marketing spend on the increase

Email marketing now accounts for 17 percent of digital marketing budgets, compared to 14 percent in 2009, according to the 'Email Marketing Industry Census 2010', a study by e-marketing firm Adestra. The increased spend can be attributed to the fact that three-quarters of those surveyed rated email as 'excellent' or 'good' in terms of return on investment. One-fifth of companies are using email to promote customer ratings and reviews, and 26 percent said they have plans to do so. Also, 28 percent of respondents are using video content in their emails, while 37 percent are using email to encourage the sharing of content on social networks. However, there are concerns that many marketers are still not following basic best practice, the study found, with too many organisations not paying sufficient attention to the quality of their email lists or the importance of sending relevant email to their target audience. For more on the survey visit Adestra.com.

IT security market rebounds

Spending on IT security is rebounding strongly, with a rise of more than 10 percent in the final quarter of last year, according to the latest study from analyst firm Canalys. Security spending is returning to pre-recession rates, the study found: in the fourth quarter of 2009, spending rose 10.1 percent sequentially, and the market was worth a total of USD3.6 billion by the end of the year. Spending was fuelled by rising PC sales to both businesses and consumers. "The release of Windows 7 and the resurgence of the PC market have dramatically helped the client security market," said Nikki Babatola, an analyst at Canalys. "This improvement will likely continue throughout 2010 as businesses roll out more computer systems." For more on this story visit V3.co.uk.

Here are some of the issues our forum members have been discussing in the last fortnight:

• Making work laptops safe for home use by kids view thread
• Converting Office files to PDFs view thread
• iPhone or Android apps for Google Tasks view thread

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Spice up your web presence with video content

Creating staff internet usage policies

Case study: The Organic Supermarket

Protect your brand online

IPA, Lansdowne Road, Dublin 4, March 29
The aim of this workshop, run by the IIA, is to demystify the 'semantic web', giving an introduction to it and its associated new technologies. You will learn how to determine whether the semantic web is relevant to your business and your target market. You will also discover the competitive advantages it can bring to your business.

TweetDeck is one of many free tools that are available for managing multiple social networking accounts. Once downloaded, the software allows you to add your social media profiles from Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and MySpace, so that you can view and update each of these accounts from one interface. The application has many useful features, especially for managing Twitter feeds, such as frequent updates, easy follower management, the ability to view and share photos, a re-tweet button, an automatic URL shortener and a spam blocker.