Social Impacts and Threats of IT

Over the last 40-50 years the altogetherude IT has had on our lives and our society is astonishing There argon many contrary impacts associated with this topic, a few of which ar Social, Economical, Legal and Ethnical. We rely on IT systems to do the simple things we take for granted in our day-to-day lives such as media, entertainment (gaming and television), advertising (products and operate) etceteraIT has developed more than ever over the past ten and although we may non notice how IT has changed, it is constantly altering everything we do in our everyday lives. umteen heap right awayadays take the procedure of IT for granted.Social concernsHow we spend out extra durationCurrently in the U.K a staggering 97% of mess in the U.K convey a PC or a computer of some sort in their homes. However, in this day and age just about battalion use of goods and services a computer as part of everyday life, whether it is for work or socialising.Nowadays most puppylike peop le in the U.K spend a large quantity of their time on the computer. It is thought that on average a normal teenager spends around 31 hours a week on the computer alone and a mind-blowing nine of these hours argon on social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace etc.Although for many of our Grandp bents and nonethe little our Pargonnts this was very differentNowadays young people are constantly being nagged by Grandparents and Parents about spending also oft time indoors and not enough outdoors.We are told that we spend far too much of our time inside (playing computer games or watching television) and that we do not spend nearly enough time outside getting the fresh air that our proboscis needs.It is thought that this younger generation seems to save a lot more recreational time than the older, preliminary generations. It is obvious that people of the older generations did not deplete nearly as much free time on their hands as we do today. As nearly all of thei r time was taken up by working, chores and other t strikes and duties. However, for us many of these chores have been made easier by various IT solutions throughout the years. speech time and effort for us today and as a result leaving us much more free time.Effects on local communitiesNow as a result of mesh development, thither are 1000s of new and diversified websites that are available to consumers, contributeing them a wider and larger selection of goods and serve online. Consequently some traditional facilities, such as local raiment shops, continue to lose clients and are subsequently forced to termination d experience as they are no longer needed within the society.Another prime reason for this reoccurring worry is that people are nice change magnitudely laid-back and dont want to have to take a trip into the shops when they sens just order everything they need to their doorstep from the comfort of their own homes. As more local shops close down there is less work within this industry and the immediate area. This can have a very negative effect on the local community.Economic ImpactsEmployment structure and working practicesIT has changed the ft of how people work in many different occupations. Good examples of occupations that have been transformed by the Impact of IT include typists who typed letters on a typewriter and administrators who use to hold up paper based records.Now as well as IT transforming the methods of work in many other occupations, new jobs have been created, giving people the chance to develop new skills within the Information Technology industry. In addition to this IT is now an internal part and key skill to many jobs today and is further required 90% of all employers With meshwork access extensively available throughout the world, many people can communicate and work apart from their office and in the comfort of their own home as it may suit their lifestyle better.This is now a very popular option for several emp loyees.SustainabilityComputers are not all good. There are negative points and various riddles related to the invention of the computer. Computers use a high amount of power and electrical energy and with so many in homes, businesses and even schools this is be approach shot a foremost problem and a exceptional contribution to energy consumption and other issues relating to this such as climate changeAdditionally, people are overjoyed and excited when new and more modern versions of the computer are developed because it kernel there is a new and better way of doing things that make life that extra bit easier. However, behind the scenes this is not good, it is a huge problem. The question many people in our society today forget to ask ourselves is where does the old computer equipment that we no longer need or use go?As a result of not enough people caring where the disposal of unwanted electrical equipment (not only computers) goes this problem is handed over to the Waste Electri cal and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE Directive 2007). Under the rules and regulations of this organisation, the manufactures of electrical equipment are obligated to provide consumers that purchase a new piece of electrical equipment a method of disposing of the apparatus that their purchase is replacing.Legal ImpactsOwnership, copyright and plagiarismWhen using teaching or data that is not your own work it is important that you recognize that copyright of the creator. In the United Kingdom the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 gives the authors of written work, melody and films rights to control the ways that their visible may be employ. However because music and films are so prospering to download over the internet, many people break this law and use the internet to slip ones mind material in copyright. Some people even set up file sharing web services that allow users to share and view copyrighted material, mainly films and music.As well as copyright, plagiar ism is an increasing problem and is commonly found within schools.Most school children today view plagiarism as changing it into their own words and dont really recognise or grasp the supposition that is it illegal Plagiarism is commonly carried out in assignment work submitted by learners in schools, colleges, and even universities. You are allowed to quote other peoples work as long as you recognise the source of information, unless you are not allowed (and it is illegal) to pass other peoples work off as your own.Ethnical ImpactsPrivacy of informationCurrently with so much personal and private information brothd on computers, personal privacy has start a problem. Nowadays almost every small characteristic and proportion of your life is recorded on a computer, including who you clapperclaw on your mobile phone, what you search for on search engines such as Google, your health check records and even you relatives.Social Networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter etc are becoming a major problem when relating to privacy. Millions and millions of people all over the world have an account of some sort on a social networking site, many people put up pictures of themselves and post blogs and wall posts of exactly where they will be and exactly what time they will be there. As a result of this, it could be dangerous as many of these sites are not secured properly.However personal information about living individuals is protected by the Data Protection Act (1998). The Data Protection Act is a law passed in 1998 that requires companies that store personal information about people on their computers, to register with the Data Protection Registrar which obligates them to keep to the eight Data Protection Principles.Unequal AccessAlthough there are numerous different benefits of network access, what happens to the people who cant get high speed access to the internet?Local and interior(a) implicationsIn the United Kingdom many people who live in rural o r countryside areas are not able to get broadband internet access because of the location in which they live in. Many telephone and cable companies refuse to lay down cables which allow people in the countryside to receive internet access because they believe that the cost of laying down the cables would be a lot higher than that of what the customer have to pay to receive the broadband connection.Another prime contribution to this problem is age, some senior people may find it difficult to understand and interpret new technology. As many services such as banking and utilities (for example electricity and oil) become progressively more internet-based, many older people might find it hard to access these facilities. They could also be placed at an scotch disadvantage as many goods and services are mostly cheaper online than that of their usual ways. For example many oil suppliers offer a discounted rate if people manage their accounts online.It is also good to remember that Interne t access in not free and not everyone can afford to pay Internet charges wherefore it is putting less economically stabled families at a disadvantage compared to more economically stabled families.Global implicationsMany people in todays society that live in Less Economically Developed Countries (LEDCS) may too find it difficult to receive internet access. Today many aspects of development such as economic and educational rely on the internet and computer skills. For some people who do not have access to this they are in danger of being left further behind. Sometimes people call the divide between the people who dont have easy access to computer technologies and those who do the digital divide. Now as a result of unequal access a number projects have been set up, such as One Laptop per Child to help develop low-cost figuring solutions.Abuse of ITThe same as many other great things in life, all great things have a drawback and in IT this is no different especially with the internet . There are many different threats and exasperations that all IT users need to be conscious and aware of.ThreatsCyber BullyingAround 10 percent of all adolescents are victims of internet bullying. This type of bullying can be a scary and worrying problem and in turn can be more serious than conventional bullying. There are many different ways that and methods that can be used, including social networking sites, SMS, e-mails and chartrooms. Many Cyber bullies encourage their friends to join in the bullying and indeed are all bullying the one person collectively as a group. netmailSpam is unwanted e-mail advertising. If you have an e-mail account you will generally receive e-mails that are advertisements most of which are annoying and have the potential to be dangers and harmful to your computer or PC. However e-mail users need to be cautious and aware when opening attachments in e-mails as they could contain viruses.PhishingPhishing is a method, used by criminals, to try and acquire information such as usernames, passwords and credit card details by masquerading as a trustworthy individual in an electronic communication service. A widely used method that almost all phishing criminals use is they send people an e-mail disguised as if it is coming from their bank. The e-mail usually tells them to then click a link within the e-mail which then directs them to a page that looks like the log-on screen to their online bank account. However, the web page is under complete control of the criminals and therefore allows them to determine the victims username, password and various other security details. After this the criminals then use this information to gain access to the victims bank account and go on to steal money out of it.Denial of service attacksA defense team of service attack (DOS attack) or distributed denial of service attack (DDoS attack) is an attempt to make a computer resource unavailable to its intended users. Although the means to carry out, motives for, and targets of a DoS attack may vary, it generally consists of the determined efforts of a person, or seven-fold people to prevent an Internet site or service from working efficiently or at all, temporarily or indefinitely. Perpetrators of DoS attacks typically targets sites or services hosted on high-profile web servers such as banks and credit card payment gateways.