‘Internet’ Archives
Children Online
Children Online We often find ourselves experiencing controversy that frames individual rights against the need to establish and enforce some method of policing the Internet. What is all of the fuss about? Should people not be able to decide for themselves what is appropriate to consume online? Where should society draw the line of censorship, [...]
Online Privacy
Online Privacy Privacy refers to the general belief that certain things such as written materials, oral communications, and matters having to do with personal relationships are confidential and should remain so unless they are voluntarily divulged. However, in the digital age and given worldwide computerization, threats to privacy have grown [...]
Warez Groups
Warez Groups Warez groups are organized bands of software pirates. Warez groups illegally obtain, crack, and make copies of copyrighted software, movies, and music. These files are known as ‘‘releases’’ in the warez community. The groups are not typically motivated by financial profit. Instead, warez groups compete with one another to [...]
Identity Theft
Identity Theft Identity theft, also referred to as identity fraud, is a criminal act where one individual misrepresents himself by pretending to be someone else. This is typically done by illegally using the victim’s personal information to open new financial accounts, use existing financial accounts, or do some combination of the two. [...]
Gaming Online
Gaming Online Millions of people today utilize computers to play video games and other simulations, both offline and online. Online gaming has been defined as a technology that enables players to connect with each other for purposes of online competition, adventure, or learning. Online games are played over some form of computer network, now [...]
Digital Youth Culture and Social Networking
Digital Youth Culture and Social Networking Digital youth culture refers to young people who regularly use computing technology to interact with each other online. This concept was first described in terms of ‘‘digital natives’’ and ‘‘digital immigrants’’ by Marc Prensky in 2001 to distinguish between young people who grew up [...]
Free Download Music and Movies
Music and Movie Piracy Music piracy has become an important issue since the turn of the century. As the Internet has grown, sales of counterfeit CDs through online auctions, Web sites, newsgroups, spam, and other channels have increased significantly. The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) estimates that 1 billion [...]
Software Piracy
Software Piracy For individuals, the legal consequences of software piracy are largely the same as for other crimes and include fi nes, imprisonment, and the confi scation of equipment. Those who work in the computer industry also face the possibility of their reputations being damaged. The use of pirated software signifi cantly increases [...]
The Origins of Internet
The Origins of Internet The Internet is presented by the highest government authority as “a global matrix of interconnected computer networks using the Internet Protocol (IP) to communicate with each other” that “encompass all such data networks and hundreds of applications” (Clinton and Gore 1997). Its model of a decentralized network, [...]
Internet Auction Fraud
Internet Auction Fraud Since the birth of eBay in 1995, online auctions have become one of the most popular activities on the Internet. Although many other companies run online auctions, eBay is arguably the best known and most successful of all. The company’s own figures for 20051 show that it is active in 33 countries and has 168 million [...]
