Living in a Digital World: the Good and the Bad.
The digital world has become an increasingly important aspect of our everyday lives, and it has transformed the way we do just about anything. Can you imagine a world without social media, online shopping, video calls and search engines that can answer all of our questions? Me neither! This emergence into a digital world has provided us with numerous opportunities that would not have been possible without technology. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, technology became more prevalent in the majority of people’s lives. Working from home, completing online lectures, having meetings or classes via zoom or even using video calls as a way to keep in touch with family: none of this would have been possible without technology. But do not get blindsided; it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. Living in a digital society comes with many disadvantages too, and with the digital world growing everyday, people need to be educated on the potential risks of the internet.
Engagement
Now more than ever, technology has been important in helping us stay engaged with friends and family. Analogue engagement refers to physical engagement such as talking to someone face to face. This has not been possible during the pandemic, leading to an increase in digital engagement, which refers to virtual methods of engagement such as online messaging, phone calls and video calls. Digital engagement lacks aspects such as proximity, body language, facial expressions, and tone of voice which prevents a personal connection being established unlike analogue engagement. However, despite the lack of some of these aspects, without these virtual methods, people would not have been able to communicate with their loved ones due to lockdown restrictions. Personally, I couldn’t have imagined getting through lockdown without my weekly quizzes on zoom with my friends! Despite analogue engagement allowing for a more personal connection to be established, video calls can make digital engagement more personal as not only can you hear each other’s tone of voice, you can also see each other’s facial expressions. I have always enjoyed video calling my friends, but it was not until the pandemic that I truly appreciated the fact we have access to this technology. Being unable to see my grandparents over Christmas would have been a lot more difficult if I was unable to see and talk to them over a virtual call.
Not only can technology be used to keep in touch with family and friends, it can also be used to engage with brands. The rise of social media platforms such as Instagram have became more and more important in engaging with the target audience and increasing brand awareness. One brand that has an impressive social media presence is Nike, who use a variety of different platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter in order to expand their business. Nike uses Instagram to post videos of people working on their fitness or images of athletes, and their focus on these people who make the brand rather than focusing on the product itself is likely to be more engaging with the target audience. The company’s use of popular hashtags such as #justdoit as well as inspirational captions will also increase engagement with their target audience because it may inspire a lot of users and cause them to regularly check their social media accounts for more inspiration. Nike’s large number of followers shows that living in a digital society has positive implications for businesses, as they can use these platforms to grow. However, factors such as bad reviews could potentially harm the company’s reputation as other users will be able to see them.
Data Security
The Internet of Things (IOT) describes the network of physical objects that are embedded with sensors, software, and other technologies for the purpose of connecting and exchanging data with other devices and systems over the internet. Digital home assistants (such as an Amazon echo) are internet-connected devices designed to make life easier for the user. These devices can carry out tasks via voice control such as turning lights on or off, playing music or telling you the weather. This can have a positive impact on users as it helps with everyday tasks. However, many people have concerns about these devices violating their privacy. These digital assistants can record our conversations as well as our location via our smartphones, and they can use this data for machine learning to improve themselves over time. Concerns about data security are valid concerns because these devices can be vulnerable to technical failure, and can also be hacked remotely. A couple from Oregon who owned an Amazon echo experienced this kind of privacy breach, as their device recorded one of their private conversations and sent it to somebody on their contact list. This shows that although living in a digital world provides many opportunities and advantages, data security will always be a risk.
Data is valuable, and although people try their best to protect their data, sometimes it can fall into the wrong hands and potentially be leaked onto the internet. One major incident took place in 2014 when Sony got hacked. They lost approximately 100 terabytes of data including usernames, passwords and documents exposing personal information about employees. Sony, a multimillionaire company who would have had security measures in place, still got hacked which highlights the threats that a virtual world brings to our privacy, and emphasises the importance for people to be educated on how they can protect themselves online.
Online behaviour and freedom of speech
Freedom of speech is part of the Human Rights Act, which states that people have the right to hold an opinion and they have the freedom to express these opinions. The internet provides a good platform for people to express their opinions as well as educate others on important topics. For example in 2020, social media was used to support the Black Lives Matter campaign and to raise awareness about how minority groups are treated. Without the internet, the world would not have been made aware of the unjust treatment that led to George Floyd’s death, and justice would not have been served. Although racism is still alive in the world today, the internet and the freedom to express your opinion has allowed users to educate themselves on the subject, which is the first step to fighting it. However sometimes it can be difficult to find the balance between freedom to express and freedom from abuse. Although freedom of speech is important, cyber bullying is not acceptable and the anonymity of the internet provides an easy way for hate speech to take place.
Reflection
I chose to study the digital society unit because I have always had an interest in the digital world and how it is constantly developing. I enjoyed studying ICT at GCSE and A-level, and chose this course to broaden my knowledge even more and study a side of technology that I have never learnt about before. As a Psychology student, one of my modules involves social psychology where we understand and explain people’s feelings and behaviours and how they act within groups. I thought that the digital society unit would be interesting to expand on this to understand how people engage with others online, not just in group settings.
The digital society course exceeded my expectations with the content that I learnt. I hoped to learn about the impact that social media and the digital world has on society, but what I actually learnt not only achieved that but a whole lot more! I found the Internet of Things topic particularly interesting because it was relatable; I own IOT devices myself such as an Amazon echo, so I could relate to how these digital assistants can make simple tasks easier in my everyday life. Not only was it surprising to hear about how this device could violate my privacy and make me vulnerable to threats, but it was also an eye opener as it taught me to be aware of how these devices can collect data without me knowing! The engagement topic was also one of my favourites because I enjoy learning about the business side of the digital world and how social media can be used to help brands grow and expand.
A challenge I faced was learning how to write a blog post, because this informal style of writing is completely different to the formal essays that I usually have to complete on my course. At first, I struggled to understand what actually makes a blog good and what I should include to make it engaging. I used my feedback from my digisoc1 assessment to help me understand what I can do to write a good blog, learning that it is important to use images and to have a clear structure that is easy to follow. Focusing on this feedback allowed me to feel more confident with blog writing, and now I really enjoy it!
This course has helped me to develop useful skills that I believe will not only be useful for my degree, but also in the future for my career. As well as blog writing, I have also learnt to critically analyse a source so that I can determine whether I agree or disagree with it. This helped me to understand the importance of having good quality evidence to back up my opinions when writing, as well as a good argument. This is an important skill to learn and will benefit my future essays and assignments.
Overall, I have really enjoyed the digital society course, and I am disappointed that I won’t be studying it still in semester two!
