Online bookshops leave gaping holes in their websites security and privacy systems according to a report from Clicksure, the Oxford e-business quality standards company.
Online spending on books is predicted to reach unprecedented levels over Christmas, but consumers need to check that their private information is secure, says Clicksure, based at the Oxford Innovation Centre in Mill Street.
A quarter of online bookshops collected personal information in a potentially insecure environment, and one store collected personal and payment information in a potentially insecure environment with no authentication mechanism, to check the identity of the customer.
Clicksure carried out the research on the top nine online bookshops to investigate a wide range of issues concerning security, privacy, quality and customer service.
Clicksure's chief marketing officer, Phil Hendey, said: "We would have expected these experienced e-traders to have their security and privacy systems sewn up, but there are many elements of these sites that do nothing to inspire confidence in e-business.
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