Transport Layer Security (TLS) – A Network Security Protocol for E-commerce

Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocol has been developed by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) as the standard protocol for providing security services in the context of E-commerce over the Internet. Thus TLS enabled web servers form the portals through which E-commerce client server interaction takes place. This paper provides an overview of the design and workings of the TLS protocol and how it enables network security for E-commerce. It would be of help to those wishing to get a concise description and a clear understanding of the TLS protocol before implementing it for Ecommerce. Another important contribution of this paper is a comparison between the IPSec security protocol and TLS in the context of E-commerce applications.