Advantages And Disadvantages Of Using The Internet ( A Detailed Article )

"A programmer can make a software that makes life amazing or insecure,

 it depends on us humans in the end."

The Internet is one of the things that has proven to be a curse and a blessing at the same time, in the current situation of the world the internet has clearly show people how useful it is. This detailed article upon the advantages and disadvantages is created so that all of you are aware of where you must keep an eye out for yourself for security and privacy and make sure you take advantage of the invention that connects us to the world by reaching people and making a change!



let me be truthful and tell you upfront that this article is highly detailed and lengthy but if you read it fully you will no longer have to fear the internet and the unknow things in it...
We have also given an example with a true story in the end


Make Sure to Share It To All the people you are concerned about!  

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Crimes in the Cyber-world and how to be aware and prevent them.

In today's world, people are more addicted to electronics than any other thing. This case is most common in kids and teenagers. Though the internet and cyber world creates an easy and a more effective environment for us, it is still a harmful tool for our existence.
People use the internet to buy, shop, play and do other stuff where they enjoy what they are doing. This presence of them in a virtual network is called cyber-id and the whole platform is called as
a cyber world.

What is Cyber-World?

Cyber-World is an online platform where everyone with an internet connection meets up and chat, play games, stream movies, etc. this is the platform where the people access their entertainment section after coming home from a tire full day or after a tiring day at home.
This Cyber-World is an open-for-all platform where kids from 3-4 years to grandparents till age infinity can do as they wish.
Cyberworld is a great way to connect people but there is always the bad side of an invention.

the online world

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Harms in the Cyber-World

Though people enjoy themselves on the internet, they are also being manipulated for their wealth and also life. The lives of almost everyone can be controlled via this platform.
In this article, we will talk about how we can take care of ourselves and protect our loved ones in the world of cybercrimes and also talk about how to prevent these crimes from happening.

cyber world

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Cyber Stalking:-

Cyberstalking is the use of the Internet or other electronic means to stalk or harass any individual, group, or organization. It may include false accusations, defamation, slander, and libel.

 It may also include monitoring, identity theft, threats, vandalism, solicitation for sex, or gathering information that may be used to threaten, embarrass, or harass. These events have even taken place by popular products like  Alexa and there are devices to avoid cyberstalking too.

Let's get this down part by part...
stalk: Using the internet, people who have criminal intentions can track your activities, save your photos, and also keep a record of all your doings via the internet. They do this by gathering information from your posts in social media, your stories on Instagram, your recent check-in in any hotel where you've updated your status, etc. These people use this information about you to:
False accuse: Committing crimes and blaming it on you by committing the crime in using your data in the first place. In this process, all his crimes are registered in your name.

Defame:  Use your data and built up a second and a rather fake story about you, targeting your position in the society and pushing you down for something you have or haven't committed. As said previously, it may contain the illegal activities you have committed too.

What is Slander? What is Libel? Libel and slander are both types of defamation. Libel is an untrue defamatory statement that is made in writing. Slander is an untrue defamatory statement that is spoken orally.  It could be in a blog comment or said on television. This utilizes media like news, Facebook, Whatsapp, Instagram, and mainly TWITTER.

cyber stalking

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Cyber Warfare:-

Cyberwarfare is the use of technology to attack a nation, causing comparable harm to actual warfare. Offensive cyber actions, such as those in Estonia in 2007, Georgia in 2008,
 Iran in 2010, North Korea has occurred in the context of international relations, only resulting in condemnation and denial by sides. An alternative view is that 'cyberwarfare'
 is a suitable label for cyber-attacks which causes physical damage to people and objects in the real world.

There is an ongoing debate regarding how cyber warfare should be defined and no absolute definition is widely agreed. While the majority of scholars, militaries, and governments
 use definitions which refer to state and state-sponsored actors, Other definitions may include non-state actors, such as terrorist groups, companies, political or ideological
extremist groups, hacktivists, and transnational criminal organizations depending on the context of the work.

There are a lot of ways through which these hacktivists can cause harm to the community and nation itself.
Some of them are:

Sabotage:-

Computers and satellites that coordinate other activities are vulnerable components of a system and could lead to the disruption of equipment. Compromise of military systems, such as  C4ISTAR components that are responsible for orders and communications could lead to their interception or malicious replacement. Power, water, fuel, communications, and transportation infrastructure all may be vulnerable to disruption. 

 Small groups of highly skilled malware developers can as effectively impact global politics and cyber warfare as large governmental agencies. A major aspect of this ability lies in the willingness of these groups to share their exploits and developments on the web as a form of arms proliferation. This allows lesser hackers to become more proficient in creating the large scale attacks that once only a small handful were skillful enough to manage. Besides, thriving black markets for these kinds of cyber weapons
are buying and selling these cyber capabilities to the highest bidder without regard for consequences.

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Cyber Terrorism:-

Cyberterrorism is the use of the Internet to conduct violent acts that result in, or threaten, loss of life or significant bodily harm, to achieve political or ideological gains through threat or intimidation. It is also sometimes considered an act of Internet terrorism where terrorist activities, including acts of deliberate, large-scale disruption of computer networks, especially of personal computers attached to the Internet utilizing tools such as computer viruses, computer worms, phishing, and other malicious software and hardware methods and programming scripts.

Cyberterrorism can be also defined as the intentional use of computers, networks, and public internet to cause destruction and harm for personal objectives. Experienced cyberterrorists,

who are very skilled in terms of hacking and cybersecurity can cause massive damage to government systems, hospital records, and national security programs, which might leave a country,
community, or organization in turmoil and in fear of further attacks. The objectives of such terrorists may be political or ideological since this can be considered a form of terror.

Though this is not a threat to us personally, this is a nationwide threat incase of defense of your country.

Let's just move ahead...

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Cyber Bullying:-

Cyberbullying or cyberharassment is a form of bullying or harassment using electronic means. Cyberbullying and cyberharassment are also known as online bullying. It has become increasingly common, especially among teenagers, as the digital sphere has expanded and technology has advanced. Cyberbullying is when someone, typically a teenager,
bullies or harasses others on the internet and in other digital spaces, particularly on social media sites. Harmful bullying behavior can include posting rumors, threats, sexual remarks, a victim's personal information, or pejorative labels (i.e. hate speech). Bullying or harassment can be identified by repeated behavior and an intent to harm. Victims of cyberbullying may experience lower self-esteem, increased suicidal ideation, and a variety of negative emotional responses including being scared, frustrated, angry, or depressed.

People are very depressed by these kinds of things as they hope to enjoy their time on the internet after a rough long day and someone just bullies the person in terms of race, skills, language, etc.
These types of misbehaviors have caught the attention of many cybersecurity companies who have begun their work towards the same.

Also, Not all negative interactions online or on social media can be attributed to cyberbullying. Research suggests that there are also interactions online that result in peer pressure, which can have a negative, positive, or neutral impact on those involved.
The terms "cyberharassment" and "cyberbullying" are sometimes used synonymously, though some people use the latter to refer specifically to harassment among minors or in a school setting.

Internet trolls intentionally try to provoke or offend others to elicit a reaction. Trolls and cyberbullies do not always have the same goals: while some trolls engage in cyberbullying,
others may be engaged in comparatively harmless mischief. A troll may be disruptive either for their own amusement or because they are genuinely a combative person.

Platforms in which cyberbullying occurs:

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Social media-:-

Cyberbullying can take place on social media sites such as Facebook, Myspace, and Twitter. "By 2008, 93% of young people between the ages of 12 and 17 were online. In fact, youth spend more time with media than any single other activity besides sleeping.

"The last decade has witnessed a surge of cyberbullying, which is categorized as bullying that occurs through the use of electronic communication technologies, such as e-mail, instant messaging, social media, online gaming, or through digital messages or images sent to a cellular phone.

Cyberbullying has become more common nowadays because of all the technology that children have access to. The most common apps that teenagers use to cyberbully are Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat. Cyberbullying has become harder to stop because parents and teachers are unaware of when and where it is happening.

Teens will say awful things to one another online and what they do not realize is that once it is said and published online it will not go away. Home used to be a safe place for teens, but now a child is still within reach of becoming a victim of cyberbullying- whether it is through YouTube, Ask.fm, or a text message.

social media

Gaming:-

Gaming was a more common venue for men in which to experience harassment, whereas women's harassment tended to occur more via social media.

Most respondents considered gaming culture to be equally welcoming to both genders, though 44% thought it favored men. 

Sexual harassment in gaming generally involves slurs directed towards women, sex-role stereotyping, and overaggressive language. Keza MacDonald writes in The Guardian that sexism exists in gaming culture, but is not mainstream within it.  

U.S. President Barack Obama made reference to the harassment of women gamers during his remarks in honor of Women's History Month.

Some game developers have been subjected to harassment and death threats by players upset by changes to a game or by a developer's online policies. Harassment also occurs in reaction to critics such as Jack Thompson or Anita Sarkeesian, whom some fans see as threats to the medium.

Various people have been harassed in connection with the Gamergate controversy. Harassment related to gaming is not of a notably different severity or tenor compared to online harassment motivated by other subcultures or advocacy issues.

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Search engines:-

Bullies use Google bombs (a term applicable to any search engine) to increase the prominence of favored posts sorted by the most popular searches, done by linking to those posts from as many other web pages as possible. 

Examples include the campaign for the neologism "santorum" organized by the LGBT lobby. Google bombs can manipulate the Internet's search engines regardless of how authentic the pages are, but there is a way to counteract this type of manipulation as well.

Here is a table about the cyberbullying-

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Race/ ethnicity	Female	95% confidence interval
White	25.2%	22.6% - 28.0%
Black	10.5%	8.7% - 12.6%
Hispanic	17.1%	14.5% - 20.15%
Total	21.0%	19.2% - 22.9%

Male	95% confidence interval	Total	95% confidence interval
8.7%	7.5% - 10.1%	16.9%	15.3%- 18.7%
6.9%	5.2% - 9.0%	8.7%	7.3% - 10.4%
8.3%	6.9% - 10.0%	12.8%	10.9% - 14.9%
8.5%	7.7% - 9.5%	14.8%	13.7% - 15.9%

            

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Problems for children under the age of 14 on the Internet:-

Scams:

Children nowadays play a lot of video games. They are so involved in that, that they think that their teammate who just praised him for playing good, is actually his new best friend.

This character of the kid is taken as an advantage by the scammers who trick the kids on thinking that they are helping out their friend during his difficult time.

      

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Here is a story by a boy of 8 years who was scammed on Fortnite by a scammer taking away $10,000 from the kid:-

"It was my fourth game and I really had a terrible play from the last three matches. I just hoped I would get a nice teammate who would carry me to the victory.

After joining the lobby, I greeted all my teammates like I usually do(normally to have better coordination with them in the game.)And out of three teammates, only one guy replied saying, 'Hey kid!'

I thought it was going to be a fun match. But then he asked me how old I was. I just said 8 as it wasn't much bothering me at the time. But eventually, he began talking close to me and getting personal. He asked if I had any friends, if my parents are there, etc. I gave all the answers truthfully and also told him that my parents weren't there at home at the time. This didn't matter to me at that moment. Eventually, we began playing together and became close friends. It was at this time, that he showed his dark side. He, after a win, knew how pumped I was, and gave me an offer. He told me, ' Hey man, there is going to be a local tournament in the weekend and I want you to participate as you can move ahead in your life.' 



He also said, ' Don't say anything about this to your parents, we'll give them a huge surprise after your win. They will be so proud of you.' I happily agreed as he had pumped me to the skies. He told me that we needed to register and it costs money. I told him I didn't have any money with me. He said,' Oh I can adjust that, just get your dad's credit card and say me a few details. I will register the slot for you. It's not that big a deal.' I did as he told. I gave him all the details he needed. But then, in no time, my dad started screaming in the dining area. He was yelling at over his phone, upon the bank manager, about losing $10,000 which he didn't transact. At this moment I knew it was all my fault and I couldn't do anything about it."
                                                              -Calvin Stone, New Jersey
 
                                         

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Stranger Danger:-

Children may find it hard to judge strangers they meet in person, and it's even harder to tell friends from foes online. Parents must keep up-to-date with the apps their kids are using and what it is that these apps do.

Stress to your kids that they should not interact with strangers on these apps, and explain that many people on social media are not who they say they are. You should also monitor your kids' Internet usage to ensure their interactions are only with real-life friends.

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(Over) Sharing information:-

Children should be aware of how much they are revealing about themselves online.

Your children mustn't share their location or use apps that let people track their movements. Discuss the dangers of revealing too much information on social media, explaining that it gives ammunition to strangers with bad intentions.

Also, avoid bypassing age restrictions for kids, and adhere to the terms of service for social media applications. For example, Facebook does not allow anyone under the age of 13 to create an account.   

                            

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 Hidden info in photos:-

Children should know the potential risks of what they're posting online. Photographs are no exception. Children mustn't send photographs unless they're 100 percent sure it is a friend they're communicating with. Photos contain EXIF data -- information about the camera you took the photo with which means the receiver can trace where the photo was taken.

With young children, it's better to restrict the use of photos on social media or make use of the parental controls many applications possess. Parents of primary and secondary school-age children should discuss the fact that photographs contain location information, which could potentially help a stranger find them.

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Advantages of The Internet

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The Internet is not always about dangers and threats to a person, physically or financially, but also holds a huge role in the advancements of a country, company, as well as an individual.

Impact of internet over developing countries:-

The Internet has not only increased the means of education all around but also helped in the progress of developing countries.

some of these are,

• Lifting Individuals out of Poverty: Through internet access, individuals in developing countries can gain access to more of the modern economy. With internet connectivity, those living in remote areas can now easily take out microloans, participate in e-banking, and more. Today, there are more than 3,098 microfinance organizations that have reached out to more than 211 million clients in developing countries globally. Via such as economic tools, those living in extreme poverty can improve the quality of their lives. For example, in a case study in India, businesses that received microloans were twice as profitable as those that didn’t. This is because with credit, those without a lot of initial capital now have a discretionary income and no longer have to choose between investing in a business or buying everyday necessities such as medications.

• Growing Access to Education: With internet connectivity and new screen technologies, third-world countries become more able to bridge the education gap between urban and rural populations. In sparsely populated areas, mobile electronic devices such as tablets are being utilized to deliver invaluable classroom instruction to children that otherwise wouldn’t likely receive it. For example, a giant literacy campaign with a budget of $173.5 million is currently being initiated by the Kenyan education ministry. The project utilizes BRCKs: durable, personalized tablets that contain educational content aiming to deliver learning opportunities to those living in even the most remote locations.

• Increasing the Ease of Communication: The internet is arguably the most inexpensive and effective connectivity tool. By accessing it, individuals in developing countries can participate in e-conversations through applications such as WhatsApp and WeChat. In a survey conducted in 2017, it was found that about 85 percent of internet users in sub-Saharan Africa used it to stay in touch with family and friends, and around 60 percent utilized it to access social media sites.

• Improving Crop Efficiency: Through IoT (internet of things) systems, farmers in developing countries can easily access information about important variables such as humidity, temperature, and terrain topography through a variety of sensors. Precision agriculture in third-world countries has also led to the development of unique insurance systems. For example, with Kilimo Salama, farmers in Eastern Africa can now purchase insurance that automatically makes mobile payments to them if their local weather stations record extreme weather occurrences such as drought or flooding. Today, over 150,000 farmers are enrolled in this program.

• Greater Global Participation: As of 2017, 53 percent of adult internet users used the internet to stay informed on the news. Because many developing countries also harbor internal conflicts, being up to date on the status quo of things becomes especially crucial for their citizens. Also, individuals in developing countries can become a part of global conversations via online communication platforms. Social media campaigns have proven themselves to be especially effective at raising awareness for many issues and increasing participation in protests. For instance, many Iranians used Twitter to protest the injustice of the disputed Iranian election of 2009. Through this social media app, the movement was able to go viral with tags such as #IranElection.

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Impact of internet over companies:-

The companies use the internet for various purposes, some of them are,

1. Marketing benefits on the Internet for business:

Businesses can get benefits by using effective Internet marketing strategies. There are various top quality advertisement platforms on the internet that help in getting a loyal customer, build trust, and increase workplace productivity. Automation of repetitive marketing tasks and campaign tracking tools are really beneficial for the business to utilize.

2.Market research for a business plan and marketing strategies on the internet

The 2nd big advantage of the internet for business is to conduct market research online. Market research is important before starting any business, launching an ad campaign, buying a new domain, writing a blog post, and even posting content on social media sites.

3.Improve workplace and business productivity

The Internet for business is really a profit-making tool.  That is important to use according to customer behaviors on the internet.  Using Productivity tools, business process automation tools, marketing automation and cloud computing technologies in business are the ways that improve productivity in the workplace by using the internet. Google Drive, Dropbox, SkyDrive, Asana, Google Analytics, Google Calendar, and Evernote, etc. applications are very beneficial for business.

4. Marketing Automation  Platforms

The use of marketing automation platforms for business is another advantage that is currently in demand. Automation means internet application, the software is used to manage, run, and grow the business. You can automate all the repetitive tasks of your business. You can automate social media marketing, content marketing, and email marketing, sales, customer management, employee management, and business inventory management works.

5.Open doors for clients, 24/7 Business Services

Internet is running all the time. People are using the internet around the world according to their time. Now to take advantage of the internet you can create, market products and services on the internet 24 hours.

I think you know why Google, Facebook, Amazon, etc. are big companies and they become successful in less time because they are open for people 24 hours.

An eCommerce website can sell 24 hours. A blog can be read by the user anytime.

This is not possible in an offline business. In offline business, customers come when you open the shutter of your shop.

6.Customer Support

Customer support is the most essential part of the business process. Using social media pages, chat plugin on a website is very beneficial and less costly to solve customer problems without the visiting physical location of the business.

7.Remote Staff / Outsourcing

If you want a designer, app developer then you can hire talent on the internet. Hiring remote staff is not only reducing cost but also it is a great option to access worldwide talent.

8. Online Meetings and Video Conferencing

After scheduling meetings with clients, consultants, and remote staff it’s time for business communication by the use of the internet. This is how the internet is helping business owners in every step of their business operations.

9.Online business courses

You invested your precious time to learn about the advantages of the internet for business. This is the advantage that you’re learning these features that are helpful for your business on this blog and it is running on the internet.

10.Cloud storage for business

Cloud storage is a part of cloud computing. In which business, marketing, customers, employees, and inventory data and information is managed and stored by cloud storage applications.

Online data storage application allows you to manage, secure, share, and access business data and information anywhere in the world from any device.

For example:-

Google Drive: – It is a Cloud storage technology. You can use it to store and share your data and information. You can also use various applications under Google Drive such as Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Slides, Google Forms, Google Drawings, Google My Maps, and Google sites, etc. You can collaborate with your team members. It’s easy to store, edit and share documents, photos, software, etc. files with remote staff or with freelancers while working on a project. It’s also great for students and teachers.

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Finally, we move on to the last part of this article, that is the advantages of the internet for an individual.

Impact of internet over an individual:-

• It provides effective communication using emailing and instant messaging services to any part of the world.
• It improves business interactions and transactions, saving on vital time.
• Banking and shopping online have made life less complicated.
• You can access the latest news from any part of the world without depending on the TV or newspaper.
• Education has received a huge boost as uncountable books and journals are available online from libraries across the world. This has made research easier. Students can now opt for online courses using the internet.
• Application for jobs has also become easier as most vacancies are advertised online with online applications becoming the norm.
• Professionals can now exchange information and materials online, thus enhancing research.

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There are a few more advantages of the internet over the whole world. People are both benefited and destroyed by the internet. What decides between the two outcomes, is the way we use it in the first place. 

Always say safe on the internet. Never disclose your identity to any random presence online.

The Internet was made for people's benefit and it is still serving its purpose.

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this post was written by,

Tejas

A very well Experienced person in Editing and Esports, He is also a Tech lover! New in our team but provides high quality and genuine content always!

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