At this early age of the internet, the e-business environment is almost like a lawless territory. Fast movers are making fortunes whereas rebels can act with impunity and move on before the legal process can catch up. The fast expansion of cyber crimes in the world has been the motivation to perform this research on its impact on the business community in Mauritius after the devastating effects in developing countries. Organisations that are not keeping pace with these realities are becoming vulnerable to cyber criminals or hackers. An analysis of the situation in the world from the literature review has provided a better understanding of the most common crimes that are causing trouble to the businesses and obstacles to the advancement of e-commerce. Compared to earlier technological changes, the internet has shown a rapid proliferation. Organisations have to be ready to face this challenge or they may face the dangers of being attacked or even prosecuted for not having secured their system properly. While securing the internet remains a major challenge for every country, businesses have to cope with limited protection until an international law become in force to control this wild territory. The reports available on the Crime trend show that there has been a steady increase in Computer related crimes in the world. The research is conducted on a sample of IT literate participants. Interviews and focus group discussion have also contributed in the accuracy of the findings. The results and findings demonstrate that there is room for improvement but there is a lack of awareness on the Cyber crime act. Hopefully, this research will help to shed light on the major concerns of the business community. VI

Thesis (MBA)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2004.