A secure multi-layer e-application method for improving e-government process

Submission note: A thesis submitted in total fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the School of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, College of Science, Health and Engineering, La Trobe University, Bundoora.

Process improvement in the E-Government sector refers to an optimized EDocument structure and processes among stakeholders in order to provide dynamic processes and flexible data in order to provide better services for the citizen. An efficient process and optimized data in E-Documents can help improve organisational performance, therefore it is important for the government to provide better services for its citizens in terms of availability, accessibility, quality, trustworthiness, speed and security. However, how to restructure E-Documents and improve processes has been a critical issue for almost every government organization The data structure of E-Documents needs to be enhanced in order to improve the E-Document process and issues relating to how to share this data between the various stakeholders need to be solved in order to build an online application which has a high level of security and better co-operation between the parties. These challenges are still open issues and have been the focus of attention of researchers and government officers from the early 1970s [1, 2]. In this thesis, based on a systematic literature review on E-Government processes, we propose a method to re-structure E-Documents and enhance the E-Document process. To be more detailed, firstly, we propose a method to improve the E-Document process based on the Secure Multi-layer E-Application Framework (SMeAF). Secondly, to encourage citizens to use the E-Government system more widely and to bridge the information gap between citizens and the government, a method for simplifying the submission of an online request for an E-Government service is presented which will make it easier to find the relevant E-Template or search for information on the E-Government system. Thirdly, with the aim to structure data more flexibly and improve data protection, SMeAF is designed. In our design framework, structuring the E-Application by layers is one of the major directions to reduce database size and enhance the process. Fourthly, for data protection and to enable data reuse, this work also presents a mapping and securing technique to ensure that the security goals are achieved for the E-Document process, that is, confidentiality, integrity, authenticity, non-repudiation, availability, proof of agreement and proof of existence. Finally, to demonstrate its usefulness and validate our work, we applied the SMeA method to a case study of a citizen applying for a licence to set up a business with the Vietnamese Government. The empirical validation of our thesis indicates: 1) simplifying the submission of an online request for an E-Government service is necessary for citizen engagement; 2) structuring the E-Document by layers to provide data which is flexible and more dynamic processes; 3) additional data protection and security for E-Documents have a positive and direct effect on data mapping and transactions.