Anonymity and Abuse on the Internet - Essay Example

Anonymity and Abuse on the Internet It is a well known fact globally that the Internet has been a bane for the people who call it their ultimate andmost prized pastime. However this has changed for the worse in the recent times since there have been serious problems which have engulfed the domains of the Internet for the sake of its users, the different stakeholders and so on. The issue of anonymity is one that has posed a number of concerns for the people who use the Internet because there are so many individuals who hide their identities and therefore pose as imposters (Saco 2002). Similarly abuse is another aspect that has come to the fore with the passage of time. Abuse means that the users of the Internet are being blamed and cursed for no mistake of theirs. It also means that the individuals who are using the Internet are being treated in an unfair manner. This is an important tangent that needs to be resolved in a proactive fashion and should be taken care of in a quantifiable capacity. Anonymity and abuse over the Internet are some of the most pressing issues that need to be analyzed and understood in a proper way. This is because the repercussions for the same are immense and the magnanimity of these could be estimated with the passage of time. The different software and programs that are used over the Internet have been effective at outlining the issues and problems which have come to the fore (Mclean 2002). One should believe that anonymity and abuse over the Internet remains a problematic area that must be understood within the proper contexts (Cowan 2004). If this is not done in the most righteous way, there could be serious consequences for the people who matter the most within the related settings. These could include the users who are browsing over the Internet, the ones who frequent social networking websites, blogs and so on and so forth. These social networking websites have played their due role at bringing people closer and by this; one does not really mean that these are coming together for all the right reasons. There are negativities as well which have come to the fore as these have been at the forefront of starting debates and discussions which are related with the anonymity and abuse issues over the Internet (Johnson 2000). Anonymity can arise from a number of reasons that take place over the Internet. One such could be the ways and means that involve non-understanding of the users that their identity can be used in a very wrong way by the imposters. There systems are hacked by the individuals who like to break into others’ systems. This is a transgression of sorts and should be avoided as much as possible by any morally responsive individual (Vanhorn 2000). However when the same is not listened to, there are serious ramifications for such negativities which come about within the related folds. Therefore anonymity and abuse over the Internet pose as problematic areas and much work needs to be done before sanity could prevail under such aegis of the World Wide Web. Virtual Crime and/or Regulating Virtual Communities Crime is on the rise within Internet and there is absolutely no denying this fact at all. This is because the people have started feeling frustrated while remaining confined within the domains of the Internet and have thus limited their lives due to a number of reasons (Crystal 2001). Now what this crime means is that virtual crime has taken the precedence over a number of other things. The teenagers and young adults do not quite seem to comprehend how their criminal ways and means have contributed towards resolving their frustrated self and thus nearly none avenue of the Internet has been left on its own. It would be correct to state that the virtual communities and social networking websites have been hit in the worst manner possible (Crump 2003). Regulating these virtual communities is the need of the hour because if teenagers get involved within cyber tussles, it could lead to some serious fights happening in the physical world. The virtual world is all the more different from the virtual one and should be regarded as such, but then again there are exceptions to this rule nonetheless. There are some issues that need to be resolved in an amicable manner when it comes to virtual communities and their related existence. These issues take the precedence because no one wants these youngsters to feel hard done by and remain aloof of the immense problems that engulf the Internet like none other. Virtual communities require that their users remain in line with the ethical and moral constructs so that any negativity that might arise at a later stage is taken care of in a quantifiable manner. These negativities can rise when there is propagation of content which is not appropriate and is freely transferred over the Internet (Martin 2002). Crime is offensive without any barriers whatsoever as it brings to light the notion of bringing disparity amongst the users on the Internet. Therefore regulating virtual communities over the Internet is important because it speaks a great deal about the ways and means through which sanity could be made prevalent over the World Wide Web, and how people can force their own selves to remain in line with the ethical and moral constructs. Regulating these communities would also mean that the users know what boundaries they can stretch to and what kind of changes they can expect within their folds once they inquire about the ethics involved overall (Taylor 2003). Online communities have been marred with differential issues prevailing for a long time now, and it is only natural to think of this in the same light. Curbing the menace of crime is a very important understanding that must be studied in a proper manner because if this crime wave is not curtailed in a quantifiable way, there could be some serious issues which could come to the fore in the times to come, speaking from a truly World Wide Web setting (Kennedy 1996). Is Online Community Interaction Liberating or Oppressive? One should believe that online community interaction looks to liberate the people more than being oppressive in the truest sense. This is because an online community interaction boosts confidence amongst the users that they should get in touch with one another and explore the basis of success as far as their related linkage bases are concerned (Chudnov 2008). An online community brings together people from different segments of the society who have gathered to share a purpose, a belief or an insightful journey – all of which they have strongly believed in with the passage of time. It makes the people to feel that they are worthy of a whole lot more than they are at a particular time (Scott 2005). It brings them in liberty of one another and thus their thinking ideologies start to change as a result of the same. One should believe that this is a positive step that is waiting to happen. An online community interaction thus brings forward people to understand nuances which are important to them yet remain difficult to comprehend at other times. An online community interaction is dependent on a number of factors, most important of which are the personality regimes of the people who are indeed the users within the online community interaction at the end of the day. An online community interaction is liberating because it gives the people a sense of purpose and ownership with what is deemed as the most quintessential topic within their lives (Preece 2000). An online community interaction would result in more positives than any negative that one can ever envisage. This easily brings to light the notion of liberation happening in a full circle and thus bringing out the best possible results for the sake of the community that has been established. An online community is the epitome of people coming together from different segments of the society, and this does not mean that they are solely based in one peculiar zone of the world. There is a good amount of evidence available which suggest that these users (people) hail from the varied zones, territories and areas of the world. It should also be noted here that an online community interaction could turn out to be an oppressing one when there are people who have a negative mindset and who want to destroy the fabric of the society through their sinister ways (Koch 1996). In essence, this means that the online community interaction would bring in more flak than it is gathering at this very moment. Criticism comes about in full circle when the users do not quite realize their role and do things which are not appropriate with their own selves (Lock 2006). An online community is essentially a virtual one and would therefore warrant a great deal of criticism at the hands of the people who do not think highly of the online community interactions. This criticism is at times backed up by solid logic which speaks a great deal about the reasoning behind having an online community interaction in the first place. Bibliography Chudnov, D (2008). The Doppler Effect of Online Communities. Computers in Libraries, Vol. 28, April Cowan, D (2004). Cyberhenge: Modern Pagans on the Internet. Routledge Crump, C (2003). Data Retention: Privacy, Anonymity, and Accountability Online. Stanford Law Review, Vol. 56 Crystal, D (2001). Language and the Internet. Cambridge University Press Johnson, D (2000). Anonymity and the Internet. The Futurist, Vol. 34, July Kennedy, S (1996). Internet Commercialization vs. Privacy. Information Today, Vol. 13, October Koch, T (1996). The Message Is the Medium: Online All the Time for Everyone. Praeger Publishers Lock, J (2006). A New Image: Online Communities to Facilitate Teacher Professional Development. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, Vol. 14 Martin, P (2002). Investigating Internet Fraud. Law & Order, Vol. 50, May Mclean, D (2002). Internet Defamation. Communications and the Law, Vol. 24 Preece, J (2000). Online Communities: Designing Usability, Supporting Sociability. John Wiley & Sons Saco, D (2002). Cybering Democracy: Public Space and the Internet. University of Minnesota Press Scott, J (2005). Bowling Alone but Online Together: Social Capital in E-Communities. Journal of the Community Development Society, Vol. 36 Taylor, M (2003). Child Pornography: An Internet Crime. Brunner-Routledge Vanhorn, R (2000). Technology - the Crazy Business of Internet Peeping, Privacy, and Anonymity. 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