Legal And Ethical Issues

Legal, Ethical, and Regulatory Issues

Many years ago, when people wanted to get way from it all, either all alone or with family they would give the local travel agent or agency a call to make all the arrangements for a desired destination. From flight plans, hotel accommodations, rental cars or entertainment. Well, the time has come where there are choices to use the Internet or use an agency. Nevertheless, people have been using the Internet for the ease of user friendly and the comfort of doing at home or work by E-business (Internet); this way the customer could have the choice of three web sites Travelocity, Expedia, Orbitz. These web sites are also known for their reliability to get information to the average consumer.

With this kind of information available and so many possibilities, it is no wonder why retail travel companies have taken advantage of the widespread access that the Internet to offers. Low cost overhead and costs allows companies like Travelocity, Expedia, and Orbitz to offer low or reasonably priced vacation packages, in order to keep their prices competitive in their business industry. With the many pros of the different portals can also bring many cons. The legal, ethical, and regulatory issues may have to taken into consideration when choosing these sites.

Once a person is on a website and would like to make a purchase, confidentiality and legal issues are things to keep in mind. Since the 9-11, there are many legal issues that arise depending on the particular website. Travel websites will have all legal issues in writing so every person whom would like to use the site has full access to view all the legal information. A site like Travelocity has information on taxes and surcharges that needs to be assessed for every flight. There are laws stating what one can bring and cannot bring on an airplane. In today's times, there are many laws that each person whom travels has to abide by or that person will get in serious trouble.

When a person goes online to purchase airline tickets, hotel stay, or car rental, privacy plays a major part because one's personal information is entered into a system. Any time one rents a car, not only is name, address, and home phone number asked, but also information on auto insurance as well. It is important that he or she feels secure to give out such personal information. On the Orbitz site there is an icon bringing the customer to their "privacy policy (Ackemann, 2006)." "If a customer has any apprehension about giving out information over the Internet, he or she is able to go directly to "privacy policy" before purchasing their travel arrangements."

Starting a business in today's society takes more than having money or investors to fund ones idea. The same stands true in that performing business online is more than creating or managing a web site. There are other essential parts to consider for a business to succeed, more so on the Internet. One key area that warrants special attention is security.

With identity theft becoming the new "snatch and grab," consumers are very concerned when visiting or considered to do any transaction with a business on the Internet. Security issues that must be addressed when operating an online business are as small as what company to use for any payment transaction to how do I keep fraud and theft issue away from the business. While privacy is important to an online business, confidentiality and the safety of personal information ranks number one. The ease, in which information is transferred across the Internet, should be a priority when searching for the best software to protect their customers. Keeping your customers free of Spam, viruses and junk mail will be appreciated and will help with making a decision to return to that website.

It is vital to have a solid business on the Internet with excellent service and superior products. Regardless if a business

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