The Problems of the Internet

The web isn't as open as you may think. There are some problems taking away from our internet freedom.

Net Neutrality

Hindering Our Resources

ㅤㅤNet neutrality is the concept that internet service providers (ISP’s) should treat all internet traffic equally. Currently, the problem is that this is not the case. Internet service providers can intentionally slow a user or company’s internet connection for any reason they want. If net neutrality is achieved, everyone has an equal chance at having a good time online, or being a successful business.
ㅤㅤTargeting a user can be done because of biases. Some ISP’s may have their own services that, if they see the user is using a rival service, they can decide to throttle their connection, which can make the user’s experience miserable. A slow internet connection is something that nobody wants, but ISP’s can simply do it for that reason, or, if they want to force a user to pay more to get the same internet speed they agreed on in the first place.
ㅤㅤIt is also vital that net neutrality is achieved in order to level the playing field for small businesses or organizations. The reason is that, because of intentional throttling of internet speeds, small businesses don’t get the same speed as big corporations can because they cannot afford it. This makes it unfair because if a user is on their website and is getting slow speeds, they won’t want to stay there, and will just go to a known website. This is why small companies may have a hard time growing on the internet. Perhaps the biggest problem is that ISP’s aren’t punished for doing this, they can do it without a worry of getting into trouble. If everyone, including large corporations, had the same internet speed that could or could not become slow at any time, they might have more motivation to make sure the ISP improves their service for everyone. Related Video

Internet Censorship

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

ㅤㅤAt its very core, internet censorship is the act of blocking information that people can see online. As in real life, it can be done by any group of people that have a significant amount of power over others. This could be a government, organization, or business. Internet censorship is a mixed topic because it can be both good and bad. If used for good, it can protect the public from harmful information like fake news and violent images. If used for corruption and control, it can impede the public’s right to know the truth of current events.
ㅤㅤWhen it is used for good, internet censorship is useful and necessary. Having open images of violent nature is very bad for the mental health of certain people. Also, allowing misinformation to stay online can alter the public’s perception of the truth of a topic, and that cannot be allowed, since it could change the course of, for example, the election of an official that may or may not be corrupt. These are just a couple general examples, but overall this is why censorship doesn’t have to be viewed as bad. Without censorship, imagine if a 7 year old was able to easily and accidentally access violent images. It would likely leave them mentally scarred. This is something that nobody ever wants to happen.
ㅤㅤThen, comes the problem of when internet censorship is abused. When it is used to block actual information simply for the benefit of an organization or government, that is when it is used in a bad way. The public shouldn’t be lied to, they have the right to know the actual events going on in their lives so they can make educated decisions. For example, North Korea is an extreme example of this. In North Korea, most people cannot even afford to access a computer, but the people that can still are not able to see most websites because they are published by western countries and have lots of valuable information on them. The dictatorship ruling the country doesn’t allow their citizens to see the truth because they don’t want to have to deal with mass uprisings by citizens that know they are actually being oppressed. This is why North Korea is an example of why censorship, and by extension internet censorship, cannot be allowed to get out of hand and be used to control the public. Related Video

Digital Divide

Inability To Access Technology

ㅤㅤDigital divide is the word used to describe the gap between people who have decent access to broadband internet and those who do not have access to it. This is a problem for a many, many reasons. The problem with this is that not everyone has equal opportunities if they do not have equal access to the internet. The reason for this is because in the modern day, internet is an important source of information. This information can be for the user or for the user to send out. Job opportunities, education, and information can be missed by a person who doesn’t have reliable access to the internet whereas someone who does would not have less of a chance to have those same issues.
ㅤㅤFor example, if someone is living in an area where the connection is very weak and not covered well, they cannot work efficiently in this pandemic because they might be required to work or do school at home. This is a problem because nobody should have to struggle just to work at their daily job or learn at school. These are things that should be equal to everyone, not just the people fortunate enough to already have access. There could be people who could likely do more than they think if only they had the internet more often to give them information that could show them that.
ㅤㅤAlso, people that may be trying to start up their own business could struggle to publicize their small business. The essential part to a small business is first being able to get customers and the most reliable way to do that is by the internet. The Internet connects many people in the modern world, and so they also connect businesses. Most successful businesses are very successful due to their presence online. Not nearly as many people might know about a restaurant if it wasn’t on yelp or google maps, and this spreads information quickly. To sum up, people and businesses need access to internet to have a much better chance of being successful. Related Video