Assignment Title: The internet has transformed the way information is shared and consumed, but it has also created problems that did not exist before.
What are the most serious problems associated with the internet and what solutions can you suggest?
The internet in the modern age has taken on a bigger aspect in the lives of most individuals and can be accessed in many major different forms and implementations and so as such has given people the ability to reach large audences and voice their opinions in social media sites (Ellison et al., 2007; Kane et al., 2014). With all the benefits the internet poses there exist some negative attributes associated with it, some of which will be elaborated more precisely in this essay with some solutions attached.
To start off with, the first problem to be discussed has to do with the issue of bullying. Bullying as a whole is a terrible trait amongst some individuals which tends to make other people feel vulnerable or threatened and can also sometimes lead to them commit acts against themselves that might lead to unwanted pain and sorrow, and although bullying is for the most part a verbal and physical affair, it can be performed through the internet. (Kowalski, Robin M., 2008). Internet bullying or cyber bullying as it is usually called, is when a person on one end of a computer screen gets damaging information on another person and often uses it to blackmail the person into committing various acts of the persons liking.
Continuing off Hacking according to dictionary.com is to circumvent security and break into a network, computer of file usually with a malicious intent.
Hackers represent a well-known threat in this respect and are responsible for a significant degree of disruption and damage to information systems (S.M. Furnell and M.J. Warren,1999). Evidence suggests that technology is increasingly seen as potential tool for terrorist organizations (Faria, Joao Ricardo., 2014). This is leading to the emergence of a new threat in the form of ‘cyber terrorists’, who attack technological infrastructures such as the internet in order to help further their cause. The individuals who hack for the purpose of self-enrichment and to gain unauthorized access into important systems need to be stopped and given adequate punishment as the consequence of their actions.
Moving on to the final problem which is the excessive use of social media, it has been found that it has become relatively easier and cheaper to communicate with people across the world and in the same means it has also made people lose touch with themselves. It is now more common for people to chat on their mobile phones than it is for them to have a face-to-face conversation, something of which has caused a major problem for the individuals involved.
Bullying on all fronts is an occurrence which has been closely studied, with different individuals coming up with/suggesting many different ways by which bullying can be stopped. Although technology provides numerous benefits to young people, it also has a ‘dark side’, as it can be used for harm, not only by some adults but also by the young people themselves (Campbell, Marilyn A. ,2005). Email, texting, chat rooms, mobile phones, mobile phone cameras and websites can and are being used by young people to bully their peers (Cantone, Elisa, 2015). From an extract in an article from the website a62despiritu it is suggested that a law is put in place where punishments or sanctions are issued to bullies as by doing that the bullies would stop and learn from the ones that are facing the sanctions. Whether or not this idea would work or not but what is certain is that new measures are being worked on every day in order to prevent more occurrences of bullying from happening.
Hacking is perhaps the problem most widely known and has become a major phenomenon across the world and has attracted the attention of major governments and corporations in a bid to be able to put in place measures that would help in preventing systems without major vulnerabilities built in. One of the easiest options to be taken in order to prevent being hacked is to update your mobile devices to their respective latest versions and to use anti-virus software’s (Jim Kerstetter, 2017)
To wrap things up with perhaps the most divisive of the problems (social media), the effects it has on youth and adults alike is one that is well known to breed anti-social tendencies (Kaya, Tugberk; Bicen, Huseyin, 2016). The concept itself (online messaging) has no innate negative attributes, the problem arises from the addiction to online messaging instead of having a physical chat with a friend or an individual. In order to curb some of the anti-social behaviours a suitable option would be to limit time spent on mobile phones and increase the time being spent on meaningful conversations with other individuals.
In conclusion, the internet has its different benefits and problems, but regardless of the problems it might pose it is pivotal that the as we come up with new technologies that we are also precautious of the dangers that are attached to it. Researchers are constantly coming up with ways that make the lives of people easier and the transfer of knowledge and ideas more seamless. It is up to researchers and scientists to come up with appropriate solutions that safeguard the lives and privacy of internet users.
References/Sources
Campbell, Marilyn A. (2005) Cyberbullying: An old problem in a new guise?
Faria, Joao Ricardo (2014) The Economics of Technology in Terrorist Organizations. (https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.uwe.ac.uk/docview/1649692954?pq-origsite=summon)
Jim Kerstetter (2017) Tech Roundup: Preventing Hacking from happening to you (http://dd6lh4cz5h.search.serialssolutions.com/?ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&ctx_enc=info%3Aofi%2Fenc%3AUTF-8&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fsummon.serialssolutions.com&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Tech+Roundup%3A+Preventing+Hacking+From+Happening+to+You&rft.jtitle=The+New+York+Times&rft.au=Kerstetter%2C+Jim&rft.date=2017-03-10&rft.pub=The+New+York+Times+Company&rft.issn=0362-4331&rft.eissn=1553-8095&rft.externalDocID=A484773899¶mdict=en-UK)
Ellison, N, Steinfield, C, Lampe, C (2007) The benefits of Facebook ‘friends’: social capital and college students’ use of online social network sites. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication 12(4): 1143–1168
Campbell, Marilyn A (2005) Cyber bullying: An old problem in a new guise? Australian Journal of Guidance and Counselling 15(1):68-76 (http://eprints.qut.edu.au/1925/1/1925.pdf)
S.M. Furnell and M.J. Warren (1999) Computer Hacking and Cyber Terrorism: The Real Threats in the New Millennium? (https://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/50731522/10.1016_S0167-40489980006-6.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAIWOWYYGZ2Y53UL3A&Expires=1539081312&Signature=iTUbVoyFliQJdCg766rVPG4u3vA%3D&response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DComputer_Hacking_and_Cyber_Terrorism_The.pdf)
a58despiritu (2013) (https://a58despiritu.wordpress.com/2013/11/27/problem-solution-essay-bullying/)