e-payments on e-bay

I joined ebay.ph about 4 years ago mainly because I finally found some of my sought-after paperbacks being sold there by some closet cleaning pocketbook junkie. Luckily for me, my very first transaction was with a seller who was nice and accommodating. Unfortunately, she was based in Cebu. After I won the bidding, she informed me that her preferred mode of payment was through g-cash and that the books will be sent via air21. It did occur to me at that time that she may not send the books even after receiving the payment. But since the amount involved in the transaction was not life threatening, I still went ahead and paid her. Three days later, I received the books as promised.

Ebay sellers basically employ 4 modes of payment for online purchases. G-cash and other mobile phone payments is just one way of paying. Another mode is through bank deposit, which most people prefer because it is after all free. Remittance service is also an accepted venue for payment. Western union, Moneygram, Lbc, Yespinoy and Xoom are some of the more popular remittance services in the Philippines. I rarely use them though, not because I don't trust them but because they're quite expensive. Paying for the exorbitant remittance fee negates whatever savings you made from a bargain purchase. And of course, one can always pay using a credit card.

The most common concern people have in using e-commerce, whether through cell phone, computers, Internet, is the security of transactions online. There's always a certain degree of anxiety with regard to our privacy and security of business transactions. As the amount of transaction goes up, so does our paranoia that fraud might occur at one point during the transaction or even after it is complete. It is somewhat calming to note that our country's E-Commerce Law empowers each one of us the capability to prosecute those who harm us. It is basically up to us if we will fight for those rights whenever we become victims of these abuses. Last year, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) released a data privacy guideline to further elaborate the law's applicability in those areas, guide businesses and consumers in handling or protecting personal data that passes through computer systems today. Data log retention guidelines, and consumer protection guidelines on e-banking, e-commerce, and telco-related services should be in the works as well. An allotment in the national budget for Cybercrime funding to both PNP and NBI to combat various forms of cybercrime from fraud, hacking, piracy, pornography, and the likes also goes a long way in alleviating some of these concerns.

As for me, I still use ebay when I'm looking for some quality bargain stuff. From houses to pet dogs to keyholders, everything that can be bought with cold hard cash is available there. Lately, new Philippine-based websites like sulit.com and auction.ph have popped up, hoping to make a dent in the market that ebay.ph has cornered for itself. According to ebay.ph, it has more than 3000 full-time sellers whose primary source of income is selling thru the website. Considering that the site generates 1.6 million unique visitors every month, that's not so hard to believe.