BLOG PROJECT
There are many things to be aware about when
using the internet and the many features that come with it. It is important to
be aware about both positive and negative things that happen on the internet.
The internet can be greatly used to help an individual but it can also be used
for negative and useless actions that can have effects on people’s lives. I
will explain the top ten things on the internet that I believe are important
for anyone to be aware about, starting with the least important.
Something to be aware about when using the
internet is that is can be very distracting for certain people. Most social
media users check their profiles multiple times a day, and feel lost if they
ever have to go a day without checking for some reason. Tuncay Ayas explains in
an article about internet addiction, “While increase in internet use implies a
positive situation, every use does not necessarily mean that it is right and
conscious. Increase in internet use causes increase in unconscious internet
users. Unconscious internet use results in excessive internet misuse.” People
can end up getting into a lot of trouble with things like child pornography,
buying or selling illegal products and much more. In 2008 the World Internet
Project scanning found out that internet use rate among teenagers aged between
12 and 14 is 88% in the United States alone. It is very easy for younger
children to become addicted to the internet but any aged person can get
distracted with what the internet has to offer.
Online gambling can be an issue for some people
when using the internet as well. Being adddicted to gambling is bad enuogh when
someone has to leave their house, but with internet access you can gamble from
the comfort of your own home. Even if you aren't addicted to gambling there can
still be negative effects from it. James O'Toole from CNN states that, "A
court-appointed administrator announced the distribution Friday of $76 million
to roughly 27,500 U.S. customers of the defunct poker site. Their accounts have
been frozen since 2011 due to a criminal case." In 2005, The AGA Survey of
Casino Entertainment recorded that 17% of online gamblers had a houshold income
of over $100,000 and 12% made less than $35,000.
It can sometimes be easy to make money using the
internet on a website like eBay. If you own things that that you don't really
need that other people are interested in, you can put them up for sale and
people will place bids for the product. If you can consistantly have products
you can build a customer base over eBay and make money more often. It is almost
like running a business out of your house. If you have something rare you might
not want to miss the opportunity to sell it on ebay. An app called Flappy Bird
was deleted from mobile app stores but was still playable if you had previously
downloaded it. Brett Milona from USA today reports that, "some listings
for the smartphones feature bids reached hundreds and thousands of dollars,
including one with a top bid of $99,900."
A large amount of people go on the internet, find
false information and believe it and spread it to others. It is very important
for internet users to take the time to find reliable information to prevent
misleading information from spreading. Just a few weeks ago celebrity rapper
Eminem was supposedly dead because of some internet hoaxes. Jessica Simpson
says in an article that “Rumors of the rapper’s alleged demise gained traction
on Wednesday after a ‘R.I.P. Eminem’ Facebook page attracted nearly one
million of ‘likes’.” Depending on the information that is being misled, this
can end up having some negative effects on an internet user.
If you own a computer and plan on using the
internet, then you better be prepared to install an anti-virus program on it as
well. It makes sense to spend a decent amount of money on a good computer
because it is convenient to have a nice working computer. But you have to
beware of viruses that can have the potential to ruin your whole computer. “By
some estimates 2003 was the worst year yet: Viruses halted or hindered
operations at numerous businesses and other organizations, disrupted
cash-dispensing machines, delayed airline flights, and even affected emergency
call centers.” says Justin Balthrop in an article about the spread of computer
viruses. He also states that, “The ‘Sobig’ virus alone is said to have caused
more than $30 billion in damage.” Internet users should be aware of web sites,
emails, messages, posts or anything that is unfamiliar or seems strange.
Anyone who uses the internet will eventually hear
about online shopping. I think that it is important for people to be
comfortable with online shopping and be able to trust it. There are a lot of
reliable and safe web sites that provide products you might not be able to find
anywhere else and usually at cheaper prices. Online shopping can save people
time and money and offers a larger selection of products, as long as it is from
a trustworthy site. Noel Merino states in an article about privacy on the
internet, “Preserving trust in the Internet economy protects and enhances
substantial economic activity. Online retail sales in the United States total
$145 billion annually.” This shows that online shopping is important in helping
our economy. As more internet users promote and use reliable shopping sites, hopefully
eventually the unsafe ones will disappear.
Cyber bullying is something younger users and
sometimes even older users should be very aware about. This can be very
negative for a person and the people around them. There have been many cases
where cyber bullying has led to the most horrific outcome, suicide. Netiquette
and Online Ethics talks about a boy named Tom Mullaney in a 2013 article, where
he hanged himself because of homosexual comments made on a site made to promote
bullying toward Tom. Netiquette and Online Ethics also state that only about 2%
of 11 to 16 year olds get bullied every day and just below 90% of them never
get bullied. Regardless it shouldn’t ever happen and everyone should practice
positive and responsible online ethics.
Catfishing is "basically
an Internet scam or hoax in which someone pretends to be someone else online
and nabs an unsuspecting victim", says Andrew Lu. Someone might
catfish to try to be someone else that they can't be or to do more dangerous
things like luring young children or stealing personal information. Depending
on what state you live in and what your intentions are when you're catfishing,
you could be guilty of a crime. Andrew Lu also talks about how, "Notre
Dame football star Manti Te'o says that he met a girl online and they started
an Internet relationship. The two apparently became a couple, and Te'o says
that he was devastated when he learned that the woman had died this past fall.
Now, it's been revealed that this girl never existed." Everyone should be
aware of this because you dont want to accidentally be accused of lying about
your identity and you really don't want to be a victom of it either.
One of the most convenient features of the
internet is the ability to share files like photos and videos so easily. Today
you can take a video or picture and send it to basically anyone you want over
the internet in just a few seconds. This is good because important information
can be spread quickly but can also be bad if the content being spread is negative.
We talked about that man who took a picture of the plane that crashed into the
Hudson River and posted it on twitter before anyone could even report it.
Things like that are useful to spread across the internet but something like an
inappropriate picture of someone being spread to hurt feelings is not okay.
Illegal file sharing of music and movies is a big issue on the internet as
well. According to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry
(IFPI), “The growth of illegal file-sharing has been a major factor in the
decline in legitimate music sales over the last decade, with global industry
revenues down around 30 per cent from 2004 to 2009.” Illegal file sharing can
lead to some intense consequences. The Recording Industry Association of
America (RIAA) states that “Criminal charges may leave you with a felony
record, accompanied by up to five years of jail time and fines up to $250,000.”
Easily being able to transfer files can sometimes be a positive or a negative
effect of the internet, depending on the content being shared.
Being aware of phony emails or messages is
another important skill that you need to have when using the internet, because
being tricked into giving up personal information to the wrong person may go
terribly wrong. The Internet Crime and Complaint center found that, “in the
report revealed that Internet auction fraud was the most reported offense,
comprising 42.8 percent of referred complaints.” Some agencies are even sending
out their own fake emails trying to fool employees so that they can learn to
notice them better. A few US Army employees received an email urging them to
reset their passwords. They spread this email and overloaded the Thrift Savings
Plan service lines and it took weeks for them to trace it back to the person
who did it. “It was an Army combat commander, acting on his own authority to
test whether anyone on his staff would fall for the trick”, says Lisa Rein and
Eric Yoder in an article from the Washington Post about the incident.
Fortunately nobody fell for it and they are probably much more aware now.
The internet can be a very
informational and fun place if you know how to use it. Using the internet
responsibly has a huge effect on you and other users around the world. Over
time I hope that everyone can use the internet in the most positive and
efficient way possible. Awareness about both good and bad things on the
internet, and learning how to use or avoid them is the only way to reach this
goal.
Works Cited
Ayas, Tuncay, and Mehmet Baris Horzum.
"Relation between depression, loneliness, self-esteem
and internet addiction." Education 133.3
(2013): 283+. Opposing Viewpoints in Context.
Web. 30 Mar.
2014.
Balthrop, Justin, et al. "Technological
networks and the spread of computer viruses."
Science
304.5670 (2004): 527+. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web.
30 Mar. 2014.
Doucet, Isabeau. "Cyberbullying Among
Students Is a Dangerous Epidemic." Netiquette
and Online Ethics. Ed. Noah
Berlatsky. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013. Opposing
Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Anti-Social Network: The Rise of a Cyber-Bullying
Epidemic." http://www.thebureauinvestigates.com. 2012. Opposing Viewpoints in Context.
Web. 30 Mar. 2014.
"Frequency of Bullying Victimization Among
11-16-Year-Olds." Netiquette and Online Ethics.Ed.
Noah Berlatsky. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013.
Opposing Viewpoints. Opposing
Viewpoints in Context. Web. 30
Mar. 2014.
"Household income of online gamblers, 2005."
Gambling: What's at Stake?. Melissa J. Doak. 2009
ed. Detroit: Gale, 2009. Information Plus
Reference Series. Opposing Viewpoints
Context. Web. 30
Mar. 2014
"Internet Fraud." Gale Encyclopedia of
American Law. Ed. Donna Batten. 3rd ed. Vol. 5. Detroit:
Gale,
2010. 495-498. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 30 Mar. 2014.
International Federation of the Phonographic
Industry (IFPI). "Illegal File Sharing Hurts Musicians
and Society." The Music Industry. Ed. Noah
Berlatsky. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012.
Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Competing in a Rigged Market—The Viewpoints in Context.
Web. 30 Mar. 2014.
Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Competing in a Rigged Market—The Viewpoints in Context.
Web. 30 Mar. 2014.
Lu, Andrew. N.p.. Web. 30 Mar 2014. <
Molina, Brett. N.p.. Web. 30 Mar
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"Online poker players get $76 million
back." CNN Wire 28 Feb. 2014. Opposing Viewpoints
in
Context. Web. 30 Mar. 2014.
Rein, Lisa, and Eric Yoder. "Gone phishing:
Army uses Thrift Savings Plan in fake email to
test cybersecurity
awareness." Washington Post 14 Mar. 2014. Opposing Viewpoints in
Context. Web. 30 Mar. 2014.
RIAA, . N.p.. Web. 30 Mar 2014.
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