Introduction

Cambodia doesn't have a unified national government portal but approximately 60 separate websites, each built independently without reference to any standards for user interface, look-and-feel, development approach, technical platform or security. The current state of digital government of Cambodia is largely fragmented, with a few online services available to citizens and businesses, for example, the online business registration at the Ministry of Ecommerce and the e-Visa platform for visitors. Both systems allow users to complete the entire process online, including payment. Besides lacking standardization, Cambodia’s framework for e-transactions is incomplete, which also hurts consumer trust in digital services.

There are many factors that influence user adoption of e-government[3] and their intention to use them, such as perceived risk, perceived control, internet connectivity, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and service quality which lead to user satisfaction. However, numerous studies show that lack of user trust is the main factor that causes failure in many e-government projects. For instance, a study focused on developing a fully functional e-government using a four-stage model shows that privacy and confidentiality issues and citizen-focused change must be considered throughout e-government development. The citizen’s concern on privacy and confidentiality is considered a critical obstacle to realizing e-government. Another study investigating the acceptance of e-democracy from a developing nation’s perspective reveals that lack of trust in government to fulfill its promises may limit citizens’ e-democracy adoption.[5] Similarly, a recent study on e-participation on an e-government website in Saudi Arabia shows that user trust can positively affect the user intention to use e-government.