Re: [PLUG] how to transact credit cards and PayPal on a web site?

[Pete Foley <lynchman@speakeasy.org>]

Well, I have done sites with credit card and PayPal transactions.  I
do not know if there is a open source shopping cart one that does
this yet.  I have actually been working on one but it is not really
ready for public eye yet.

Anyway, PayPal is easy, you just need to either redirect the user to
PayPal with some query string params, or you could just do an http
post to them.  They support both.  The downside is that the user can
then change the price in the URL or the form, so you need to save
the total on your end too and not rely 100% on PayPal.  Also, their
system is not really complete.  For example, they let you redirect
to a URL after the transaction is done.  But, it goes to that URL if
the sale passed OR failed (say the user canceled the order).  So
there is no way to know what really went on at PayPal.  I emailed
them about this, and they said that they were making an API, but I
have not heard anything new since then.

As for credit cards, I have never done actual processing online.
All of my clients had the little phone terminals already, so they
just needed the number and they would run it through by hand.  So I
have the sites in SSL (duah), I validate the credit card numbers
(note that does not mean it is a real account, just a valid number
for the type of card they have chosen), and I encrypt it into the
database.  Once the store owner gets it through an admin console
type thing, it is erased.

Hope that helps...
-Pete

Thus spake Chuck Boyce Technology on Tue, Jul 03, 2001 at 04:34:38PM -0400:
> Hi,
> 
> What is the best way to "do" credit card and PayPal transactions on a web site.  My main concerns are:
> 
> lowest cost,
> security,
> ease of programming
> 
> in that order.  
> 
> Are there any Open Source shopping cart projects (i.e. http://theexchangeproject.org/ )that incorporate credit card transactions?
> 
> Is it best to go "3rd Party" for credit card transactions?
> 
> Thanks!
> 
> Take care,
> 
> Chuck
> --
> Chuck Boyce Technology
> info@chuckboycetechnology.com
> www.chuckboycetechnology.com
> phone 215.432.4386
> fax 215.387.9403

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