Audience This book is intended for merchants who are planning to use SET for providing a secure method for conducting business over the Internet, and the programmers/system administrators who are responsible for SET's implementation and administration. Not all of the book's chapters will be equally applicable to all readers, but each chapter has something for everyone. As a merchant you need to know how SET can contribute to your business and how it works within your existing infrastructure. SET is not just a smart technology, but it also makes business sense. Each chapter addresses issues that need to be explored before making a business decision to adopt SET for an electronic commerce solution. As someone implementing SET, you need to understand how SET works, and how it works together with your existing technology. Each chapter explores the technical aspects of the SET protocol and how all of the pieces work together to conduct a safe end-to-end transaction. Organization The organization of this book is designed so that you can read and build your knowledge from chapter to chapter. Each chapter's content is fairly dependent on the knowledge presented in previous chapters; however, if you are fairly confident you know the basics, skipping ahead to other subjects isn't unreasonable. The appendices reference, and are places to turn for, additional information not covered in-depth in the regular chapters of this book. Basic Material The following basic material is included in this book. This material is designed to give you a basic understanding of the SET protocol.
Foreword - a foreword written by William Archibald, Chief Technical Officer of GlobeSet, Inc. Preface - provides basic information about the layout and contents of this book. Chapter 1, Introduction to SET- serves as a preview to the SET protocol. It addresses basic issues such as what SET is and what it is designed to accomplish. Chapter 2, Software Components - gives a detailed look at the software components used with SET. Software use by the cardholder, merchant, and banking institutions are all discussed. Chapter 3, Encryption and Cryptography - is a primer for understanding the basics about cryptography and encryption. SET-specific algorithms and processes are discussed at length in this chapter. Chapter 4, Certificates and Certification - provides an overview of SET's certification process, including the parties involved and issues of trust and authentication. Chapter 5, SET Payment Messaging - a complete look at the messaging that is the heart of the SET protocol. Payment messaging between the cardholder and merchant, as well as the merchant and payment gateway, are discussed in-depth. Chapter 6, SET Protocol Extensions and Additions - covers a list of some of the more important possible extensions to the SET v1.0 protocol. Each of the proposed extensions is covered in detail. Chapter 7, SET Standards and Compliance - a look at the process that SET providers must complete in order to be certified as SET-compliant and the organizations involved. Additional Material These topics provide useful information about SET and broaden basic knowledge of the protocol. Appendix A, SET ASN.1 Code Appendix B, JPO ASN.1 Code Appendix C, PKCS #7 Formats Conventions Used in this Manual Table 0-1describes the conventions used in this manual:
Table 0-1: Conventions Used in this Manual
Convention Definition
bold Bold text brings attention to differences in content. For example: aeiou and abcdu.
bold italic Bold italic text denotes a note, caution, or warning. For example: Caution: Paying attention to Greek philosophers can make you question authority.
italics Italics draw attention to a new word or concept to which you should pay attention to. For example: Encryption is performed using the sender's private key.
courier Courier font shows the output of a computer performed operation - either in memory or output to a screen. For example: The message's digest would be nvzkdoek33.
Angle brackets enclose names of keys on the keyboard. For example: .
About the Author Grady Drew is a former technical writer for GlobeSet, Inc., a company based in Austin, TX providing SET software solutions. After earning a B.A. in English from Michigan State University, Grady joined the GlobeSet team in May of 1996. Grady is the founding member of the GlobeSet publications department. In addition to being a writer, Grady has extensive system administration and programming experience - as well as teaching experience gained by a teaching assistantship for the Computer Science department of Michigan State University. When not working, he enjoys marathon running, writing, reading, scuba diving, hockey, and fly fishing. He can best be reached via e-mail at gdrew@voyager. Acknowledgments I wish to thank the employees of GlobeSet, Inc. for their help and support throughout the course of writing this book. Without their help, there would be no book. Thanks everyone. Further Reading The following books and articles contain information that is invaluable to understanding the SET protocol and electronic commerce.
Applied Cryptography, Second Edition, Bruce Schneier, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1996. An Overview of the PKCS Standards, Burton S. Kaliski, Jr., RSA Laboratories, 1993. Public-Key Cryptography Standards (PKCS), RSA Data Security, Inc., May 13, 1997. Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) Specification, Book 1: Business Description, MasterCard International Incorporated,and Visa International Service Association, Version 1.0, May 31, 1997. Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) Specification, Book 2: Programmer's Guide, MasterCard International Incorporated and Visa International Service Association, Version 1.0, May 31, 1997. Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) Specification, Book 3: Formal Protocol Definition, MasterCard International Incorporated and Visa International Service Association, Version 1.0, May 31, 1997.
From the Back Cover
Build and implement secure SET E-commerce payment systems-now!
The SET protocol supercharges E-commerce by providing a standard, secure way to handle credit card transactions online. It represents the first vendor-neutral Internet security solution that delivers authentication, privacy and data integrity, all in one neat package. Using SET for Secure Electronic Commerce is the first book that shows developers and merchants all they need to know to start profiting from SET. It reviews the entire protocol, and every aspect of a SET transaction, from start to finish-with practical examples. Coverage includes:
- Wallets, merchant servers and other SET software components
- Encryption and cryptographic techniques
- Certificates, the certification process and how SET handles trust and authentication
- SET payment messaging scenarios, including payment messaging between cardholder and merchant, and payment gateways
- Advanced protocol extensions, including the SET debit architecture, smart cards, Japanese Payment Options and PIN-based solutions
Using SET for Secure Electronic Commerce offers a practical roadmap for implementing your own SET applications and an up-to-date guide to the SET vendors and standards you'll need to do so. For thousands of online merchants, SET isn't just smart technology: it's smart business. Now's the time to get started-and this is the book.
See all Editorial Reviews
