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Advantages and Disadvantages of the Internet
of The Virtual Community (qtd. in Weise D4). There are a number of tools available today that may help keep the Internet environment safer for children. Some companies, such as America Online, try to monitor everything that is said and done on their online service; however, because thousands of chat rooms are available, it is simply impossible for everything to be monitored, claims Tricia Primrose, worker for America Online (Weise D4). In other words, children want to explore things; however, there are people on the Internet that are just too persuasive (Pettus F1).
Musicians are also concerned with disadvantages to the Net such as, accessibility and freedom. They are upset because the Internet provides their music online at no charge to consumers. File-sharing services, such as Napster, provides copyrighted songs to all Internet users. The main concern is - the music is free! Musicians feel Ў°they are not getting paid for their workЎ± (Murdoch n.p.). Because of Napster, it is almost impossible to close down all file-sharing services; there are too many of them to count (Murdoch n.p.). Legal cases have developed across the country with copyright owners declaring that their music is being plagiarized by people on the Internet (Ў°Big Music Fights BackЎ± n.p.).
Another major disadvantage of the Internet is privacy. Electronic messages sent over the Internet can be easily snooped and tracked, revealing who is talking to whom and what they are talking about. As people surf the Internet, they are constantly giving information to web sites (Aspinwall n.p.). People should become aware that the collection, selling, or sharing of the information they provide online increases the chances that their information will fall into the wrong hands. Consequently, they will become a victim of identity theft, one of the worst privacy violations with potentially devastating financial consequences (Aspinwall n.p.). When giving personal information on the Internet, people should make sure the Web site is protected with a recognizable security symbol. On the other hand, this does not mean they are fully protected because anyone may obtain a userЎЇs information (Aspinwall n.p.). In other words, Ў°the most common Internet crimes are frauds and con gamesЎ± (Covington n.p.). .
Today, not only are humans getting viruses, but computers are also. Computers are mainly getting these viruses from the Internet; yet, viruses may also be transmitted through floppy disks. However, people should mainly be concerned about receiving viruses from the Internet. Some of these dangerous viruses destroy the computerЎЇs entire hard drive, meaning that the user can no longer access the computer. Virus protection is highly recommended (Aspinwall n.p.).
Despite all of the terrible disadvantages of the Internet, there are numerous advantages. In fact, the advantages out weigh the disadvantages. Alcestis Oberg uses elderly people as an example of those who benefit the most from the Internet; a great deal of elders are shut in their homes due to health problems. She also claims the [next page]