Internet Safety

The internet is seen to be a good thing and has its useful concepts but there are many problems associated with the internet that are a major cause for concern and that are over looked by people. A major problem associated with the internet is cyber bullying. The most of cyber bullying generally happens on social networking sites such as facebook, bebo and MySpace. Teenage girls are twice as likely as boys to become victim’s perpetrators of bulling on social networking sites as they post photos of themselves and people write nasty comments underneath. It has been reported that over 35% of children have been subject to cyber bullying, and almost in five have experienced cyber bullying more than once. Cyber bulling has increased in recent years. In a national survey of 10-17 year olds, twice as many children have indicated that they have become victims to cyber bulling or online harassment in 2005 compared to 2000. Cyber bulling can cause people to get into a terrible state of mind and can lead to depression, thus leading to self harming and suicide. An example of cyber bulling that had a tragic ending was of Irish teenager Pheobe Prince who was driven to suicide due to cyber bullies. Cyber bullying is a serious issue and should not be ignored as the number of young children and teenagers becoming subject to cyber bullying is on the increase.   Another major issue that is associated with the internet is paedophilia. This has become a huge concern worldwide. Internet predators are a real threat to boys and girls of all ages and use the anonymity of the internet to their advantage as they can be whomever they want .People are shocked and parents are concerned that devious paedophiles are using the internet to target innocent children online and use it to arrange meetings with them. Parents are advised that computers are placed in a common room or a family room to prevent abuse of the internet. Worried parents spy on their children to see what subject matter they use online, how ever spying has an impact on the trust relationship that parents have with their children, and if they have been approached by a paedophile then they may hesitate to confide in their parents. Parents should encourage children to open up about any bad experiences that they have had online. Parents are also advised to talk to their children about their internet safety. Children should be advised not to go into private chat rooms with people, as everyone online is a stranger. Getting a child on their own is exactly what a paedophile desires. It has been reported that 16% of teenagers have considered meeting strangers they have met in chat rooms. 8% have actually met with people they have met online. It has also been reported that over 4% of young internet users received aggressive sexual solicitations, which threatened to spill over into real life. Also 4% of young internet uses reported that they had distressing sexual solicitations that had left them feeling upset and very afraid. Online predators look for children who are emotionally vulnerable which can be related to personal issues at home or at school as use this to their advantage by befriending the child and empathise with them while building a pseudo friendship and trust. It is very easy for a child tat has inappropriate information, they could be searching an ordinary everyday topic and a site may appear with inappropriate information and images that may be harmful to them. Internet fraud is another major problem associated with the internet and is becoming more frequent. The number of people who use the internet to purchases goods has increased majorly over recent years. Thus increasing the number of people who have become subject to internet fraud. People who use the internet to purchase items should take extreme caution and insure that the web site that they are using is safe and their bank details are secure. People are advised to purchase a UV card so they do not have to put their bank account details online. The number of people that are becoming subject to internet fraud and hundreds and thousands of euro has been taken is on the increase.   There is also health risks associated with the internet. There is a personal health risk associated with the excessive use of the internet. More and More children are spending there day on the internet and are not getting any physical exercise. The internet can become addictive and children should not use the internet to the exclusion of other developmentally appropriate tasks such as the need for physical activity.   Although the internet has many problems associated with it, it also has a variety of benefits for the people who are willing to use it. The internet has an enormous amount of information available. The internet has become the most valuable tool in various settings of a person’s life. The internet is also evolving to be the most powerful source of information. The use of the internet has made jobs easier and oversimplified tasks that took an enormous time to do before.   Many older people who wish to return into education cannot do so because of marital and family commitments. But they now have the opportunity to study over the internet. People who do educational courses over the internet may only have too meet with lecturers/tutors maybe once a month and the remainder of the time is spent studying and working at home. The internet also has many educational websites for children. There is over 3 million educational websites that are child friendly. The internet is also very usefully for buying items online but you must be careful as I said before internet fraud is rife at the moment and people are losing hundreds and thousands of euros due to online credit card fraud.   In conclusion the internet has many benefits, but it also has many flaws that should not be over looked but taken very seriously.