Randomness and the Netscape Browser

As the World Wide Web gains broad public appeal, companies are becoming interested in using the Web not just to advertise, but also to take orders for their merchandise and services. Since ordering a product online requires the customer to transmit payment information (such as a credit-card number) from a client program to the company’s server program through the Internet, there’s need for cryptographic protection. By encrypting payment information before transmitting it, a customer can ensure that no one except the company from which he is purchasing can decode that sensitive data.