Conceptions of Trust

This chapter introduces the fundamental concepts of trust, with emphasis on their applicability to the e-services platform. This sets the tone for this book and creates a platform from which the topics can be explored more deeply in the other chapters. This chapter presents a description of e-services and trust environments, provides the prevailing perspectives on trust, and introduces a unifying definition that can be used for e-services. Furthermore, the indicators that influence a trust decision when e-service invocation is desired, is specified, and the current trust models are highlighted. These models may be leveraged when designing the architecture for an e-service solution. In addition to being a resource during e-service system design, this chapter focuses on making the reader cognizant of the broader technical and management-related issues surrounding trust in e-services, and providing a common platform for discussion.