The Internet Predicament

Author: Ashok.G.V.
Country: India

The Internet as defined by wikipedia is a worldwide, publicly accessible series of inter connected computer networks that transmit data using Internet Protocol. It can be thus looked at as a network of networks.

One of the most momentous things to hit our generation would perhaps remain to be the internet. Personally, the internet has single handedly catapulted my career forward. My social life is on the net with my friends from around the world. I have had the proud privilege and honour of working with some of the finest organizations, law firms and individuals living thousands of miles away thanks to the internet. I have formed some amazing bonds with motivated, smart and hard working individuals, adults and youth alike, whose commitment to positive change in society is both inspiring and comforting. A sizable majority of my knowledge comes from the internet and it is the best way for me to write, express and publish my views for the world to read.

While my case represents the rosy side of the internet, it is none the less also a fact that a dark side presents to us yet another instance to show that there are good and bad aspects for new technologies and developments in the field of science.

To begin with Internet stalkers are doing the rounds. The person you could be chatting with, while at face value may seem your age and of like minded nature, the fact remains that it is impossible to categorically verify the details of the person on the other side of the chat window. But perhaps one of the greatest blots on the internet would be the ease at which pornography can be circulated using this network. All it requires is for a person to just click on a button certifying that he/she is 18 and then the industry that represents the single biggest client of illegal human trafficking is available in all its forms for the viewer to view. In ordinary circumstances, while it would be possible to enforce the minimum age bar for materials of such nature, through the internet the kid is vulnerable to come across things not appropriate for his/her age. Although web cameras do help us connect on a more personal level with our loved ones, they remain the single biggest mediums for pedophiles, child pornography perpetrators and stalkers to view their victims and subject them to crimes without ever having to meet the victims in person. The list of negative consequences of the internet goes out to credit card fraud, phishing scams, etc. People have lost a lot of their savings thanks to these kinds of frauds. Internet also presents itself as the single easiest way to steal intellectual property and to commit unauthorized copying, distribution and selling of proprietary data and content protected by intellectual property rights of individuals and companies alike. One of the greatest hurdles in the effectiveness of intellectual property rights protection remains the internet.

The internet presents to us, the power to connect and communicate. As long as we hold these lines of communication, we remain united and powerful. But at the end of the day power is not without its share of responsibilities. It is settled law that greater the power, greater the responsibility. For every person who becomes careless and makes mistakes, he/she is encouraging the perpetrator to go ahead and victimize more people and commit more crimes. While it is practically and at present impossible to prevent the birth of criminals in this society, it is possible for us to exercise our caution, stay vigilant and hold out in the back of our minds that perhaps it is safe to apply a margin of error to our judgment of a person with whom we are speaking to over the internet. Every time we prevent ourselves from being the subject matter of a crime, we are discouraging the criminals from expanding and diversifying to other potential victims. In our ability to exercise caution and maintain restraint while being sensible, we are ensuring the safety of thousands of children and adults worldwide. We cannot ignore the implications of our actions when so many lives are at stake, so let us be smart members of gtalk, yahoo messenger, msn messenger, etc. as the case maybe and help make the internet a safer place so that more people can connect and unite through the means of this marvelous technology.