It's best to have Netscape encryption for credit card numbers.

Although the risk in accepting credit card numbers over the Internet without any encryption is minimal, there are not many people willing to submit their card numbers in an unprotected session, mainly due to excess press hype.

Those same people will, of course, use a cellular phone to order by credit card, and a cellular phone transmission can be monitored by anyone with a $100 scanner radio.

So, the issue really is not whether it's safe to submit sensitive information using a web form; the issue is: Will your customers do it?

You have several options if you want to accept credit cards via web form:

1. Accept them anyway and take the risk.
2. Tell your customers to fax their card number.
3. Have them phone in their card number.
4. Have your customers submit their order with a phone number and you call them.
5. Add encryption capability to your site or server and "go to town."

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