The Duality of the Internet
A brief history of the Internet, its pros and cons and my takeaways from the Digital Society course
Fast forward to the year 2022…
The global digital population is 5 billion people, which is 63% of the world’s population. We’re now fully settled, living in the digital (or internet) age and our world’s deepening dependence on the internet has brought with it bucket loads of improvements and helped us — in numerous ways — simplify the way we live our lives. From the healthcare sector to education and even grocery shopping, we can now get our groceries delivered to us within a matter of minutes because the internet allows us to. Something that would’ve only been a dream 50 years ago. On the other hand, we’ve been taught time and time again that no matter how good anything appears to be, nothing can ever be truly perfect and, of course, the Internet is definitely not an exception to this rule.
It’s easy for us to assume the internet has always been this great and with the rapid rate of improvement that we’ve witnessed in recent years, to think that is not surprising. However, the internet of today is a culmination of decades of research, ideas, failed experiments and the innate desire of several important figures — including Bob Kahn, Vincent Cerf and Tim Berners-Lee — to make a positive impact on the world.
Brief history of the internet
Now, let’s take a journey back to the 1980s…
Although the foundation of the internet goes back a few decades before this, the 1st of January of 1983 is considered the day the internet was born. Since then it has had a profound effect on the way we search for information, the way we communicate and a multitude of other essential aspects of our everyday lives. Initially, the internet was created as a way for government researchers to share information. Prior to this, computer networks did not have a standardised way of communicating. The creation of a new protocol known as the Transfer Control Protocol/Internetwork Protocol (TCP/IP) allowed computers on different networks to communicate with each other. With this, we were one step closer to making computers available to everyone. The issue, however, was that computers were still large and immovable, for them to be commercialised and become available to all users, this needed to change.
From the 1970s onwards, we began to see growth in the newfound personal (home) computer industry. These personal computers were not very sophisticated, the growth in this industry was mainly as a result of people’s fear of missing out on the ‘information revolution’.
Between 1986 and 1987, the internetwork (internet) grew from 2,000 hosts to 30,000. People began to use the internet to read the news, transfer files to each other and communicate. Even with this promising increase in the number of users, the internet still needed to be easier to use. The solution to this problem was finally devised in 1989 when Tim Berners-Lee proposed a new way to structure the information on CERN’s network which improved the ease of access. The concept he proposed was a ‘web of information’ and is what we now know as the World Wide Web (WWW). By January 1989, the number of hosts on the internet was 80,000 and by November this number had doubled.
Over the next decade, the birth of the WWW coupled with the invention of web browsers such as Mosaic and Netscape helped non-academics also get involved in the evolution of the internet. Consequently, the number of websites rapidly grew from 130 in 1993 to over 100,000 in 1996. By the end of the 1990s, the internet had become essential to the lives of millions of people around the globe.
Pros — one side of the coin
The countless benefits of the internet are there for us all to see, even if we might take a lot of them for granted. The internet has allowed us to do great things. An example is the Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem which has allowed us to enjoy things like self-driving cars, smart fitness watches and improved home security with things like the Ring doorbell. The IoT is a giant network of connected things and people — all of which collect and share data about the way they are used and about the environment around them. All this data helps companies improve their products to better suit the needs of their customers.
In a digisoc3 essay from a previous year, I read that social interaction has been found to be absolutely critical for both mental and physical health. The internet has been of great help in this regard. During the pandemic, we saw how vital the internet had become in keeping the world connected. Offices were closed but workers could still communicate, schools were shut but students could continue learning. All of this was possible because of the internet.
Another benefit of the internet is the ability to access a world of information. You can ask Google almost anything and within seconds you’ll be provided with answers from people across the globe. The speed at which news travels around the world is also as a result of the internet. Keeping everyone updated on current events is essential and the internet plays a huge role in making this possible.
Cons — opposite side of the coin
As stated in the beginning of this blog, the multitude of benefits the internet provides does not come without drawbacks. Data breaches have become much more common due to the internet. As mobile devices have become more important to individuals and business operations, cybercriminals have increasingly targeted them. According to Check Point Research, 97% of organisations have encountered cyber threats to mobile devices and 46% have had an employee download malicious data that has put the business at risk. It poses a very important question, can our data ever be totally safe when it’s on the internet?
The privacy of our data should be a human right but we’ve come to learn that even the tech giants can’t guarantee this. Here’s a list of the 15 biggest companies that have been breached, surprisingly companies like Apple and Amazon are included. These breaches can be incredibly harmful to individuals because hackers can steal sensitive information, such as passwords and emails, and sell them on the dark web.
The rise of the internet has brought various benefits to news media, such as the ability to quickly spread content. However, it has also bred a new kind of exploitative content, which is referred to as fake news. This term refers to stories that are either fabricated or misleading and are presented as real news.
My Reflection on DigiSoc
As someone who grew up after the internet had become a global phenomenon, I’ve learnt to appreciate that the internet and technology can be a blessing to the world when it is used for good. This aside, there are times when I worry that the benefits do not outweigh the disadvantages as much as we think. With the rising rate of data breaches and the issues with data privacy, my hope is that as the internet evolves, it also becomes safer. I’m sure I’m not the only one that has come across an ad about something I recently talked about and wondered how my phone managed to not just eavesdrop on my conversations, but also share that information with Amazon or Google for example. If our devices have this much information on us, making sure that data is safe should be a priority.
My entire second year of university was online and the experience was far from what I imagined it would be. As a computer science student, I’ve made it a habit to constantly improve my ability to learn independently but I really took for granted the benefit of having physical lectures as they helped me stay more engaged with certain modules’ content. Reverting to face-to-face lectures this year allowed me to recognise the difference. I enjoyed the structure of the DigiSoc course as it was properly prepared to be taken online unlike other modules. One aspect of the course I appreciated was being able to discuss interesting topics like digital engagement and smart cities with other students. Seeing their different perspectives and experiences gave me a broader understanding of certain topics. While studying computer science, my course didn’t involve that much essay writing but I appreciate the way DigiSoc helped me practice my writing skills in a more interesting way than academic writing has. Writing blogs was not something I was into but I have enjoyed it.
My final year project was cybersecurity related and topics we covered, such as critical analysis and the internet, taught me to take a different approach to understanding the problem and engaging with the information I researched. I was also able to think more deeply about how to better apply computer science concepts to real life. It’s evident that the internet is here to stay and I believe this course has immmensely improved my ability to understand and handle several aspects of living in a digital society. A skill that I am grateful for and hope to improve on over time.
