Dangers of the Internet

Of the many milestones that have defined human development, the internet can surely take its place amongst Fire, the wheel and the printing press among others. The internet has allowed knowledge to disseminate amongst the masses irrespective of age, race, gender, or geographical location. Any man, woman or child can find answers to any question he or her seeks just with the click of a few buttons. However, like all human discoveries and inventions, there are those who are willing to abuse the system and use the tools provided to implement their nefarious deeds.

??????????????Behind the seemingly magical and enriching superhighway of information there is danger lurking. This article will take you on a brief but important journey in better understanding this intricate maze. For many of you especially the older generation, your first brush with the internet has and continues to remain Facebook and WhatsApp. You think you know the internet just because you sit on Facebook in your free time and browse through family pictures, videos and other trivial entertainment. However, if you pay close attention you will realize that most of the posts on your Facebook wall are of your contemporaries. You will seldom see posts by your children, nephews, nieces or other youngsters. This is because when you jumped on to Facebook a few years ago, they (the youngsters) jumped ship to other platforms on the internet.

??????????????One of the first platforms to welcome these digital refugees was Instagram. Many of you have heard this name but few understand it. You are so blissfully happy with Facebook that we do not feel the need to use or understand any alternative. Instagram by itself if pretty harmless but the effect it has on teenage minds is mind numbing. Recent leaked documents from Instagram have revealed that regular use of Instagram causes anxiety, depression and bullying in teenagers especially the girls. It is also known to foster poor self-image and sleep disorders in these young minds. The software behind Instagram is designed to keep the children hooked onto this toxic environment. The worst part of this is, Instagram officials knew of this problem and encouraged it.

??????????????If you thought Instagram was bad, the next platform called Snapchat will surely make your hair stand. Snapchat introduced the world to one time messages. The one-time feature allowed a user to send a message to other users who could only view the message once. ?After the receiver sees the message, the system deletes it forever. This wild new feature was used indiscriminately by kids across the world to send each other inappropriate messages, pictures and videos. This feature was so popular that many mainstream apps soon followed with their own versions of the onetime messages. Many of these chats, pictures and videos found themselves reposted on the internet and led to a host of online bullying, blackmailing and embarrassment. ?

??????????????The latest entrant to the social media world is this new online platform called Discord. Discord is still at its infancy with most of the users being nerds and geeks. However, it won’t be long that the mainstream jumps onto this new platform. Discord is an online platform to create forums, chat rooms for likeminded individuals to hang out online. The forums are available for every known hobby and interest from gardening, cooking, gaming, and gambling. Although Discord provides a lot of functionality to computer enthusiasts to network and communicate with each other, it also creates new avenues for perpetrators to lure unsuspecting kids and teenagers. As we go further down the rabbit hole we reach the depths of the internet which is called the Deep Web and the Dark Web where one can find all sorts of interesting and dubious goods and services. But that is for another day!!!

However, the internet is not all bad. The article is not meant to frighten you or dissuade you from the true potential of the internet. The platforms mentioned above form a small portion of the internet; the rest of it is filled with information and knowledge that is waiting to be discovered. Hence, just like a forest that is serene, beautiful and wild, the internet too provides a variety of experiences based on what you set out looking for.

Do let me know of your views.

Dr. Reuben Buthello