A virtual team is a group of people working interdependently through various types of electronic media across organizational and geographic boundaries for a common goal (D'Souza and Colarelli, 2010) . Research indicates that virtual teams are becoming increasingly popular in organizations in the United States and around the world (D'Souza & Colarelli, 2010; Rusman, van Bruggen, Sloep, & Koper, 2010). These teams vary in size, degree of geographic dispersion, shared prior work experience, nature of the mission, and expectations for a shared future (Rusman et al., 2010). Although virtual teams have potential benefits such as removing physical boundaries, the ability to form new partnerships, and optimizing skills (Chinowsky & Rojas, 2003), they also present many challenges that may not be also common in traditional teams. The overall goals and objectives of a project can become a problem if they are not consistently reaffirmed by managers or team leaders. Without the benefit of regular, ad hoc personal meetings, virtual team members may misinterpret, inadvertently change, or lose focus on project goals. For this reason, individuals have a greater responsibility to remain focused on both expected outcomes and goals (Chinowsky & Rojas, 2003). A reliable environment for teams to exchange information securely can be a necessity for virtual teams; therefore, security can pose another challenge. Different types of projects may require different levels of security. A virtual private network may be necessary to ensure that information is transmitted securely to the intended recipients. Authentication and encryption techniques can ensure secure transmission of electronic data...... middle of paper ......2), 93-95. doi:10.1145/1323688.1323714Greenberg, P., Greenberg, R., & Antonucci, Y. (2007). Create and maintain trust in virtual teams. Business Horizons, 50, 325-333. doi:10.1016/j.bushor.2007.02.005Mortensen, M. & Hinds, P. (2001). CONFLICT AND SHARED IDENTITY IN GEOGRAPHICALLY DISTRIBUTED TEAMS. International Journal of Conflict Management (1997-2002), 12(3), 212-238. doi:10.1108/eb022856Platt, L. (1999). Virtual team: where is everyone?. Journal for Quality & Participation, 22(5), 41. Retrieved from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3616/is_199909/ai_n8872660/Rusman, E., van Bruggen, J., Sloep, P. and Koper , R. (2010). Fostering Trust in Virtual Project Teams: Toward a Design Framework Based on a TrustWorthiness ANtecedents (TWAN) Schema. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 68(11), 834-850. doi:10.1016/j.ijhcs.2010.07.003