Chapter 12. SAP Internet IntegrationSecure SAP Services for E-Commerce

The promise of electronic commerce is one of the major factors contributing to the rapid growth of the Internet as a communications medium. In fact, we all see e-services transforming the way we work and live already, making tasks from booking travel to shopping to banking simpler and more cost effective. With mySAP.com, SAP envisages a business ecosystem of partners and customers. Business information will not only be available or users with an SAPGUI on their computer but also for the casual user of these services, whether inside or outside the enterprise. Based on Internet technologies, mySAP.com provides access to the entire suite of SAP applications, thereby acting as a business workplace. It also acts as a marketplace web site for companies to locate each other and exchange goods and services.

The term “Internet” can have a variety of meanings. Often Internet and World Wide Web are used synonymously. Strictly speaking, the World Wide Web is the part of the Internet that is accessed through web browser technology. Intranets use World Wide Web technologies to provide services to internal users. An extranet is a connection with a defined group of external communication partners who use Internet technology, possibly even the Internet infrastructure itself. This is typically the case for business-to-business communication. It is important to authenticate the users in a reliable way so that the information is not accessible to unauthorized parties. Protection of data against eavesdropping and modification by unauthorized parties is also an important issue.

Together with the performance and reliability of SAP Internet integration, special emphasis must be devoted to the security implications of opening SAP enterprise core applications to the Internet. Because the Internet is an open network, neither availability nor security is guaranteed. Enterprises are finding that the Internet is a less-than-friendly environment for conducting mission-critical activities. Unfortunately, there are always people who don't play by the rules. With mySAP.com services as a focal point of doing business over the Internet, security issues become even more important. Networks must allow authorized access to resources but must pre vent unauthorized access to sensitive resources and data. Therefore, security aspects must be included in planning right from the beginning.