eCard Wiki

E-cards are comparable to more traditional methods such as paper greeting cards or postcards. The principal distinction is that e-cards are produced by means of digital media rather than
being printed on paper.

They are accessible through publishers by way of websites, and can be sent using e-mail.
E-cards are regarded as more ‘green’ or environmentally friendly than the established methods
of paper postcards and greeting cards.

The many businesses that give access to e-cards are considered as more environmentally conscious when equating them to card companies that use paper; due to the fact that their product lessens the company’s carbon footprint on the earth because the end product does
not use paper.

Because the e-card is only available online, this makes them “digital content”. It is because of this that they have much more functionality than customary greeting cards. For instance, it is
possible to send the same e-card to groups of people at the same time; or they can be custom-
made with one particular recipient in mind.

Given that e-cards are considered “digital content”, it is possible to save them on any electronic device. At this moment however, e-cards cannot utilize features such as digital audio or video. But, since the e-card has come such a long way in the past few years with many added features, it is only a matter of time until this could be possible.

How E-Cards Are Used

The person who wants to send an e-card can look through various ones that are specifically geared toward their intended purpose. The publisher’s internet site will make them readily available for perusal, and conveniently broken up into easily identifiable categories. Once a selection is made, the e-card can be tailored to the recipient by adding either a personal message, picture or video (in some cases). When the personalization is complete, the sender then provides the electronic-mail address of who is to receive the e-card. The website will then send out an e-mail to them containing a message that they are to receive an e-card from the sender.

E-Cards Available for Printing

There are some types of e-cards that can be printed out from your computer instead of sending them through an e-mail. While some may consider these as ‘atypical’ e-cards, they do have their advantages. For example, they definitely cost less than traditional paper greeting cards, and one can make them more personal than a bulk greeting card purchased in stores.

Hi-Tech Progression

E-cards, and the technology behind them, have improved so much since their inception in the late 1990s. However, the one remaining constant is the way they are sent. When the e-card recipient receives the e-mail from the publishing company, it does not contain the actual e-card. The e-mail includes a link that is coded directly for the e-card that has been originally designed just for them.

E-Postcards

Postcards, as they are called, use motionless images. The receiver, after getting the publishing company’s email and corresponding link, is taken to the postcard just like they are any e-card that is sent to them. Upon opening, they see the still picture that makes up the postcard. This is usually complemented with a personalized message from the sender.

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A ‘Flash’ of Animation

Flash animated e-cards are readily offered by most of the major e-card publishing companies; as a result, they are the most frequently used style of e-card today.

These kinds of e-cards are cleverly created using vector animation in a two-dimensional format that is managed by means of a scripting language. Typically these are made using an Adobe format; however, extensive use of this software on most computers means that flash animated e-cards can easily be viewed by most anyone.

Whoever receives this method of e-card will get to see a moving image, usually lasting anywhere from fifteen to thirty seconds. Typically these ’shorts’ are cartoonish in style; but some can be very complex and convincing in design. Oftentimes, to accompany the animation, a soundtrack containing spoken words and music will play in the background.

Some flash animated e-cards are interactive. For instance, the recipient will be able to open a particular door or indicate which part of the e-card’s picture they want to animate. Flash animated e-cards can also allow the receiver to play games and such as well, if that is what the e-card was designed to do. For the most part however, flash animated e-cards require nothing more than to sit back and watch, while still conveying the sentiment intended by the sender.

E-Cards Gone Mobile

With the ever-increasing technology, e-cards can even be sent directly to someone’s mobile device or phone. These “M-Cards”, as they are generally known, were created by Sharpcards Limited in early 2000. M-Cards are sent through the network’s WAP (Wireless Application Protocol), which in turn downloads it to the mobile device sent by way of MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) straight to the recipient.

E-Cards and Their History

While we know that the e-card became widely popular in the late 1990s, trying to pinpoint the exact origin of the electronic card can be difficult. Suffice it to say that this could very well be one of those times when we should look forward instead of looking backwards through time.

From the beginning of their popularity, e-cards have been used extensively; enough so that more and more companies have recognized their appeal. According to E-Commerce Times [1], Branch Internet Services has said that the first Christmas e-card was available more than ten years ago. This first e-card, which was sent less than 15,000 times, may have started it all.

Since that time, e-cards have seen many changes; in both quality and quantity. Where the first Christmas e-card contained only a picture of a holiday-themed light display [2], we now have e-cards that incorporate sound, animation, and interactivity. And, with the numerous categories of available e-cards, one can find that perfect e-card to send whether it is for holiday greetings, special occasions, or simply just because.

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In the beginning, a large amount of the available e-cards were obtainable for free; this was mainly in part due to advertising sponsorship. Today, many are still free of charge, however, there are some e-card sites that charge a fee; whether for all of their e-cards, or for a few exclusive, premium e-cards. There are even some e-card sites that, instead of charging by the card, will charge a yearly membership fee that allows their members to send out their choice of e-cards throughout the length of their membership.

Security

In view of the fact that various e-card websites are made aware of the e-mail addresses of the recipients, and oftentimes of the sender’s as well, disreputable people known as spammers know how to use e-cards to find operational electronic-mail addresses.

Whenever an e-card gets sent, it typically involves providing the recipient’s e-mail to that particular e-card company; which is considered ‘a third party’ in this situation. As with any other third party service - (for instance, companies who use ‘mailing lists’) - operators have the opportunity to exploit this information. An example of this exploitation would consist of the e-card company sending ads to the recipient’s e-mail address.

Major Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have rules regarding anti-spam; and in the aforementioned case, those advertisements would be considered as spam, because the recipient in this situation never requested, or opted in, to be given them [3]. In cases such as this, both parties, the one who sent the e-card (because they provided the electronic-mail address) in addition to the company (because they sent the unsolicited advertisement), could be held accountable for spamming.

There have been instances where hackers - those who use their knowledge of how computers work to obtain unauthorized access to someone else’s computer - have used e-cards as a scapegoat to cause problems. Mid 2007 saw such an attack by way of e-mails [4]. These e-mails came with the heading telling you that you had received a postcard. It is unfortunate that many of these contained a link, or links in some cases, to malicious websites where, using Javascript, they were able to compromise the user’s computer. Some of these embedded links led to malware files cloaked as the e-card.

Simple Rules to Protect Yourself and Your Computer

Are e-cards safe to send? Absolutely! The only thing you really need to do to protect yourself and those you wish to send e-cards to, is use common sense whenever you send or receive an e-card; or anything online for that matter.

If you receive any e-mail correspondence telling you that you have received an e-card, especially if it 1) does not mention the name of the person who sent it; 2) the name of the person is recognizable, but misspelled; or 3) does not contain the sender’s e-mail address - then simply do not open it or follow the links inside. In instances such as those, all you need to do is delete the message from your e-mail inbox.

When it comes to protecting yourself from hackers, common sense is the greatest equalizer. When you choose to send an e-card greeting to someone, do your research and find a reputable company with which to do business. There are plenty of e-card companies that treasure their customers and work hard to protect any information that is given them.

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LIST OF SOURCES:

[1] & [2] - http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/47708.html

[3] - http://www.mail-abuse.com/an_listmgntgdlines.html

[4] - http://isc.sans.org/diary.html?storyid=3063