Information System

Introduction

Throughout many years e-commerce and the development of the related IT have changed our economy in the way we create value (Pathak, 2003). Every company and many professions are forced to adjust to the new developments caused through e-commerce. Generally e-commerce refers to all forms of commercial transactions based on digital data processing and transmission (Pathak, 2003). This paper discusses first the influence of e-commerce on accountants’ task to support business decisions and the role of internal auditors in an e-commerce environment. Then it covers accounting and legal issues and their implications and “CPA Web Trust” and its relationship to customer confidence.

Influence of e-commerce on accountants’ task to support business decisions

Due to the high level of competition, corporations need a strong strategy based on a huge variety of business decisions. Kogan, Sudit, Vasarhelyi (2009) claim that in general the accountant’s primary tasks are collecting and organizing financial information to support business decisions. But because of e-commerce accountants will operate in a highly networked environment and they have to handle an ever-growing array of traditional and non-traditional data including traditional accounting data. The flow of business intelligence about customers, competitors, new products and technologies will thereby increase in speed and in breadth. (Kogan, Sudit, Vasarhelyi, 2009). Consequently accountants are pushed to keep up with current IT developments.

Kogan, Sudit, Vasarhelyi (2009) further state that e-commerce gives customers and suppliers more opportunities to communicate with each other online. Long-term suppliers will have a permanent online access to specification, production schedules and sales forecasts of their customers. Accountants of both companies, supplier and customer, have to participate in linking databases and information systems of the respecting companies. This includes the design, the...