The Internet The Kingsway School

Drawbacks of the Internet Undesirable Material Security Finding Information Filtering

Undesirable Information There is little control over what is on the web. As many of you know it is extremely easy to publish material onto the world wide web. On the web a vast amount of the material is either: offensive misleading unreliable or plain rubbish Surfers must exercise judgement when deciding which sites and what information is reliable.

Undesirable Information Availability Undesirable information is available as it has always been but now it is easier to get hold of. Pornography It is very easy to find and can be obtained anonymously or even by mistake. People who would not dream of buying from a shop can obtain it from home. Criminal Activities Groups can co-ordinate their activities. This can be positive but it does allow criminal gangs to operate e.g. violent crime like football violence Terrorists Terrorists have been able to obtain information about how to procure and produce weapons. They are also able to exchange information. Racism and Hatred Material promoting distrust or hatred towards certain groups is easy to find and distribute. The views can easily be published no matter how unbalanced. Laws Every country has different laws. This means that information may be legal in one country but not in another. It is becoming impossible to police.

Security Data can travel by any route to a destination which means it could be intercepted and read. With this in mind many people are wary about using credit cards on line and sending sensitive information via . Encryption techniques are used to try to prevent unauthorised access to information. Access can be gained to your machine from elsewhere on the internet. To try to prevent this firewalls are initiated.

Finding and Searching Due to the amount of information it is difficult to find what you want. Search engines all work in different ways, some look for headings, others look inside the web sites and others only search other search engines. Questions must be phrased carefully. Following links from trusted sites can reduce the amount of time wasted in following up searches.

Filtering It is not possible to block access to all sites but most people believe children should be protected. Filters can be used to prevent sites showing certain images or information from being viewed. Their success is limited. Distribution of files via the internet is easy and this may lead to breaches of copyright etc.

Benefits of the Internet The Kingsway School

It is up to Date Most up-to-date research can be made available. The latest news can be viewed e.g. Sept 11 th But Some sites are left forgotten and never updated. Are you being given an unbiased opinion?

Multimedia Web sites do not just contain text. They can also include sound, images and movie clips. Messages can be put across in all sorts of imaginative and exciting ways.

It is Accessible Most people in the developed world have access to most of the information on the internet. Never before has so much information been available to all. The cost of connection is constantly decreasing. But Some people cannot access afford the equipment Many people around the world do not have access to the required infrastructure.

Good for Customers Being able to do business on line is popular because: You can choose when to do business. It allows people to shop at times convenient for them. Wide ranges of goods are available. Prices are cheaper. It is possible to buy goods from other countries and suppliers that are cheaper. Buying cars over the internet is popular because they are cheaper in Europe than in Britain. Delivery can be very rapid because stock can be kept at cheap locations

Good for Business As we have seen the internet is good for: advertising obtaining customer details for mailing lists communicating with other businesses communicating with customers conducting business transactions Displaying full details of goods and services Doing business in new ways Entering new markets-possibly global.

Internet Resource There has been a huge, worldwide explosion in the use of the Internet. It is already changing the way we work, shop and bank. 1.Why the Internet has grownWhy the Internet has grown 2.The Internet and the way we workThe Internet and the way we work 3.How the Internet is changing our lifestyleHow the Internet is changing our lifestyle 4.Concerns about the InternetConcerns about the Internet 5.The futureThe future 6.Exam TipsExam Tips 7.GlossaryGlossary