Chapter 11- Societal Impact
Applications of digital technologies have redefined and evolved all spheres of human activities.
While we reap the benefits of digital technologies, these technologies can also be misused.
We have few positive and negative points of using internet. New theme is to spread awareness about
the usage of internet
DIGITAL FOOTPRINTS
Whenever we surf the Internet using smartphones, tablets, computers, etc., we leave a trail of data
reflecting the activities performed by us online, which is our digital footprint.
Active digital footprints and passive digital footprints
There are two kinds of digital footprints we leave behind.
Active digital footprints which includes data that we intentionally submit online. This would include
emails we write, or responses or posts we make on different websites or mobile Apps, etc.
The digital data trail we leave online unintentionally is called passive digital footprints. This includes
the data generated when we visit a website, use a mobile App, browse Internet,
On examining the browser settings, we can find out how it stores our browsing history, cookies,
passwords, auto fills, and many other types of data.
Besides browser, most of our digital footprints are stored in servers where the applications are hosted.
DIGITAL SOCIETY AND NETIZEN: Anyone who uses digital technology along with Internet is a
digital citizen or a netizen.
Being a good netizen means practicing safe, ethical and legal use of digital technology.
A responsible netizen must abide by
net etiquettes,
communication etiquettes and
social media etiquettes.
net etiquettes: One should be ethical, respectful and responsible while surfing the Internet.
(A) Be Ethical :
No copyright violation:
Share the expertise: it is good to share information and knowledge on Internet so that others
can access it. The information shared should be true and unambiguous.
(B) Be Respectful :
Respect privacy:
Respect diversity: in a group or public forum, we should respect the diversity of the people in
terms of knowledge, experience, culture and other aspects.
(C) Be Responsible:
Avoid cyber bullying: any insulting, degrading or intimidating online behaviour like repeated
posting of rumours, giving threats online, posting the victim’s personal information, sexual harassment
or comments aimed to publicly ridicule a victim is termed as cyber bullying.
Don’t feed the troll: We should do not encourage troll messages which are fake and which
effects one’s dignity, we need to ignore such trolls.
Communication Etiquettes:
(A) Be Precise:
Respect time: we should not waste precious time in responding to unnecessary emails or
comments unless they have some relevance for us.
Respect data limits: For concerns related to data and bandwidth, very large attachments may be
avoided. Rather send compressed files or link of the files through cloud shared storage like Google
Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, Yahoo Dropbox, etc.
(B) Be Polite: Whether the communication is synchronous (happening in real time like chat,
audio/video calls) or asynchronous (like email, forum post or comments), we should be polite and non-
aggressive in our communication.
(C) Be Credible: We should be cautious while making a comment, replying or writing an email or
forum post as such acts decide our credibility over a period of time.
Social Media Etiquettes:
Be Secure:
Choose password wisely;
Know who you befriend(intention may be wrong to hack your details);
Beware of fake information (don’t forward stop there itself);
Be Reliable: Think before you upload
DATA PROTECTION: In this digital age, data or information protection is mainly about the
privacy of data stored digitally.
All over the world, each country has its own data protection policies (laws).
Intellectual Property Right (IPR): Intellectual Property refers to the inventions, literary and artistic
expressions, designs and symbols, names and logos. The ownership of such concepts lies with the
creator, or the holder of the intellectual property. Intellectual Property is legally protected through
copyrights, patents, trademarks,etc.
(A) Copyright: Copyright grants legal rights to creators for their original works like writing,
photograph, audio recordings, video, sculptures, architectural works, computer software, and other
creative works like literary and artistic work.
Copyrights are automatically granted to creators and authors.
(B) Patent: A patent is usually granted for inventions. Unlike copyright, the inventor needs to apply
(file) for patenting the invention. When a patent is granted, the owner gets an exclusive right to
prevent others from using, selling, or distributing the protected invention
(C) Trademark : Trademark includes any visual symbol, word, name, design, slogan, label, etc., that
distinguishes the brand or commercial enterprise, from other brands or commercial enterprises.
Violation of IPR : Violation of intellectual property right may happen in one of the following ways:
(A) Plagiarism : Presenting someone else’s idea or work as one’s own idea or work is called
plagiarism. If we copy some contents from Internet, but do not mention the source or the original
creator, then it is considered as an act of plagiarism.
(B) Copyright Infringement: Copyright infringement is when we use other person’s work without
obtaining their permission to use or we have not paid for it, if it is being sold.
(C) Trademark Infringement: Trademark Infringement means unauthorised use of other’s trademark
on products and services.
Public Access and Open Source Software:
Licenses provide rules and guidelines for others to use the existing work. Open source licenses help
others to contribute to existing work or project without seeking special individual permission to do so.
The GNU General public license (GPL) and the Creative Commons (CC) are two popular categories
of public licenses. CC is used for all kind of creative works like websites, music, film, literature, etc.
GNU GPL is another free software license, which provides end users the freedom to run, study, share
and modify the software, besides getting regular updates.
Free and open source software (FOSS) has a large community of users and developers who are
contributing continuously towards adding new features or improving the existing features. For
example, Linux kernel-based operating systems like Ubuntu and Fedora come under FOSS.
Software piracy is the unauthorised use or distribution of software.
CYBER CRIME: Criminal activities or offences carried out in a digital environment can be
considered as cyber crime. In such crimes, either the computer itself is the target or the computer is
used as a tool to commit a crime.
Hacking: Hacking is the act of unauthorised access to a computer, computer network or any digital
system.
ethical hacking(white hat hackers)
non-ethical hacker (Black hat hackers)
Hacking, when done with a positive intent, is called ethical hacking. Such ethical hackers are known
as white hat hackers. They are specialists in exploring any vulnerability or loophole during testing of
the software.
A non-ethical hacker is the one who tries to gain unauthorised access to computers or networks in
order to steal sensitive data with the intent to damage or bring down systems. They are called black hat
hackers.
Phishing and Fraud Emails: Phishing is an unlawful activity where fake websites or emails that look
original or authentic are presented to the user to fraudulently collect sensitive and personal details,
particularly usernames, passwords, banking and credit card details.
(A) Identity Theft : A user’s identifiable personal data like demographic details, email ID, banking
credentials, passport, PAN, Aadhaar number and various such personal data are stolen and misused by
the hacker on behalf of the victim.
Ransomware: This is another kind of cyber crime where the attacker gains access to the computer and
blocks the user from accessing, usually by encrypting the data. The attacker blackmails the victim to
pay for getting access to the data, or sometimes threaten to publish personal and sensitive information
or photographs unless a ransom is paid.(threathen calls)
Combatting and Preventing Cyber Crime:
Following points can be considered as safety measures to reduce the risk of cyber crime:
• Take regular backup of important data
• Use an antivirus software and keep it updated always
• Avoid installing pirated software. Always download software from known and secure (HTTPS) site
• Always update the system software which include the Internet browser and other application softwa
• Do not visit or download anything from untrusted websites
• Usually the browser alerts users about doubtful websites whose security certificate could not be
verified; avoid visiting such sites
• Use strong password for web login, and change it periodically. Do not use same password for
all the websites. Use different combinations of alphanumeric characters including special
characters. Ignore common words or names in password
• While using someone else’s computer, don’t allow browser to save password or auto fill data, and
try to browse in your private browser window
• For an unknown site, do not agree to use cookies when asked for, through a Yes/No option.
• Perform online transaction like shopping, ticketing, and other such services only through well-
known and secure sites
• Always secure wireless network at home with strong password and regularly change it.
INDIAN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ACT (IT ACT)
The Government of India’s Information Technology Act, 2000 (also known as IT Act), amended in
2008, provides guidelines to the user on the processing, storage and transmission of sensitive
information. In many Indian states, there are cyber cells in police stations where one can report any
cyber crime.
IMPACT ON HEALTH: But interacting in an improper posture can be bad for us — both physically,
and mentally. Besides, spending too much time on Internet can be addictive and can have a negative
impact on our physical and psychological well being. Overtime work, Addiction on games, webseries
Ergonomics is a branch of science that deals with designing or arranging workplaces including the
furniture, equipments and systems so that it becomes safe and comfortable for the user.
Ergonomics helps us in reducing the strain on our bodies including the fatigue and injuries due to
prolonged use. Reduce the strain and postures
Chapter 11- Societal Impact
We have few positive and negative points of using internet. New theme is to spread awareness about
the usage of internet
DIGITAL FOOTPRINTS
Whenever we surf the Internet using smartphones, tablets, computers, etc., we leave a trail of data
reflecting the activities performed by us online, which is our digital footprint.
Active digital footprints and passive digital footprints
DIGITAL SOCIETY AND NETIZEN: Anyone who uses digital technology along with Internet is a
digital citizen or a netizen.
A responsible netizen must abide by (behaviour in society / moral sense of use / tursworthy info)
net etiquettes,
communication etiquettes and
social media etiquettes.
net etiquettes: One should be ethical, respectful and responsible while surfing the Internet.
(A) Be Ethical
No copyright violation
Share the expertise
(B) Be Respectful
Respect privacy
Respect diversity
(C) Be Responsible:
Avoid cyber bullying
Don’t feed the troll
Communication Etiquettes
(A) Be Precise
Respect time
Respect data limits
(B) Be Polite
(C) Be Credible
Social Media Etiquettes:
Be Secure:
Choose password wisely; Know who you be friend; Beware of fake information
Be Reliable: Think before you upload
DATA PROTECTION: In this digital age, data or information protection is mainly about the
privacy of data stored digitally.
Intellectual Property Right (IPR): Intellectual Property refers to the inventions, literary and artistic
expressions, designs and symbols, names and logos.
(A) Copyright
(B) Patent
(C) Trademark
Violation of IPR : Violation of intellectual property right may happen in one of the following ways:
(A) Plagiarism
(B) Copyright Infringement
(C) Trademark Infringement
Public Access and Open Source Software:
CYBER CRIME:
Hacking: Ethical hacking (white hat hackers) and Non-ethical hacker (Black hat hackers)
Phishing and Fraud Emails:
INDIAN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ACT (IT ACT): IMPACT ON HEALTH