The Digital Divide

Today ICT is the key to achievement, everyday; employees, students, teachers and society in general use computers to complete several tasks. ICT has transformed the way in which people function, including both work and leisure activities. 

The digital divide, also known as the digital split is a term used to describe the variance between people who have access to the resources to the new information and communication tools, such as the internet, compared to those who don’t have any access to new kinds of technology. The term also describes the variance between who has the knowledge, skills and ability to use all kinds of technology and those who don’t. The digital divide exists between those living in rural areas compared to urban areas, this mainly due to the lack of education in rural areas, the vast majority are uneducated unlike those in urban areas. However, it can also be compared between economic classes and on a global scale between the more and less industrially developed countries.

The impact of the digital divide

The digital divide affects both local communities as well as global countries. This divide of digital technologies does not only have a high inconvenience on a communication level, but it also has huge repercussions on an economic, social, educational and cultural level.

Due to this, the digital divide does not only affect the people who are less fortunate and do not have the same technology as the western world. The divide has larger effects in the countries in which they live, this meaning the gap between MEDC’s and LEDC’s increases, it also affects the vast areas of society as a result.

Concluding the divide does effect more than the individual population, it also affects the entire country as there is a lack of new advanced technology or introduction of it as a whole in many countries.

The Global Divide

The global divide is the split between technologies in different countries; this is mostly the divide between people in the western world and MEDC’s as opposed to third world countries in LEDC’s. This divide mainly involving economical differences between MEDC’s and LEDC’s, many of these include:

·         What the western world have access to as opposed to the developing world.

·         Microchips have been available in the western world for many years.

·         Allows computers to become small, has led to the development of personal computers.

·         Computers allow people to search in depth and improve and simplify their lives.

·         Digitalizing occurred within America first.

·         There are obvious disadvantages of not having technology as concluded in the developing world.

·         Computers cannot be correctly and efficiently used in LEDC’s.

Nowadays without internet access most countries cannot economically function properly efficiently, this is because it is essential to the use of countries for economic growth and development. Places such as cafes now have computers with internet access for those who do not have access at home.

Misconceptions and the global divide

People are forever leading to misconceptions and making false conclusions, there include misconceptions involving income. Today people do not need ever increasing financial incentives to continue working, big salaries for corporate execs are not physically required for economic growth. Global studies have proven there is no positive relation between the pursuit of happiness and high income, meaning money is not the result to happiness.

In addition there are several misconceptions involving economic growth one of these factors being there may be no endless future of income security for workers of the western world, no matter what their level of education, the promise of protecting American’s income from cheap labour is false. Spending money on public housing and museums for example is not a drain on economic growth, spending money on public goods is not the bad thing, meaning taxes are in no way bad for the economy.

In order for the UK to overcome geographical technological problems a range of information communication technologies are being used to help provide people with internet access. According to the BBC, wireless technology otherwise known as Wi-fi is helping people in california go online and learn computer skills. A wireless connection can now span upto 150 miles long and 75 miles wide, which is benificially for the geographical factor of the digital divide.

The Local Divide

The local divide is split into communities in MEDC’s. This divide has occurred due to those who use ICT and those who do not. The local divide is being fought in a variety of ways, these being:

·         Outreach centre ruptures the divide within communities and their understanding of ICT.

·         Offer occurs due to economic problems and generation as the old age have no interest in ICT.

·         This effect runs corresponding to the global divide

·         Internet shopping has become popular, without this people lose out on these features, low prices, functionality and delivery.

·         Access to current information is more accessible within the internet and online.

·         Local divide has as many problems as the global divide, however to our societies it can cause a more apparent gap, which western countries can see directly.

The local divide does not differ dramatically from the global divide; it too creates barriers between individuals. The local divide is the divide created through communities within countries. This split is due to two main factors, the divide in generations and wealth of those within a country. Those who cannot afford all the new technology or similarly do not have the opportunity to use it and those who have retired and do no longer require the need for technology to work. It can be seen to be split from younger wealthier generations who have the ability to use technology that will work.

The local divide therefore is the divide within communities today, it can be seen to have a parallel effect to the global divide as both problems split communities and counties into segregated groups.

Advantages of the local divide:

·         The digital divide itself may be damaging for LEDC countries, however it does allow for a level of economic stability, due to countries only selling goods to those within their own country and not developing countries.

·         This makes sure if political links are broken, business do not lose out on a main market for their goods.

·         A level of stability does occur due to countries only selling goods to those who are devolved, and secure.

Disadvantages of the local divide:

·         A massive Market is lost due to goods and business not being able to efficiently communicate, through sending and receiving orders with a high level of accuracy.

·         Countries do not possess a level of organisation able to sustain many of the goods that could potentially be sold to developing countries.

Facts and figures:

The majority of people in the uk have access to the internet, however; there are still 10 million who do not. Of these people 4 million are the most socially and economically dissadvantaged in the country.

• 25% of adults have never used the internt before
• 1/3 of households do not have internet in the uk, 39% of people without access in the uk are over 65
• 38% of people who do not use the internet are unemployed

How can the Digital Divide gap be reduced?

One way in which the digital divide can be reduced is by schools all around the world teaching information communication technologies to the younger generations on how to use different technologies such as the internet and mobile phones. It would be beneficial for all if information communication technologies were combined in healthcare, agriculture and other social- economic activities. The only way in which the gap could be reduced in poorer countries if more money became available to them, this money could be raised from other countries to enable the possibilities of reducing the gap. Another way the digital divide could be introduced is if more people had access to the internet and promoting in more rural areas.

Economic Divide

The economic divide refers to the importance of income, development and literacy, in poorer countries people cannot afford to buy new technology. Having computing in poorer countries would be pointless as no one knows how to operate such devices, plus they have more important concerns such as finding food and water. People today give money to charities to help equip classrooms with school chairs, desks and chalkboards. This differs greatly to the UK, we go to school each day and have access to computer, smart boards and many more advanced technology. Most schools in the UK are able to afford to purchase computers. Whereas some less fortunate countries are unable to buy computers as they are too expensive, also before they can buy a computer they would need to have some form of electrical connection which is also too expensive for several countries.

The United Nations launched the ‘Digital Solidary Fund’ to help finance projects to the use of new technologies in countries who currently can’t afford access. To be able to go on computers you need to be well educated to read and spell, for people in poorer countries this is not a possibility. I think it is a good idea for less fortunate countries to be provided with internet access and computers and also the education needed to operate the devices; mainly so these people do not feel excluded.

As I have grown up the cost of technology has increased rapidly and is still continuing to increase. As soon as any person purchases a new piece of technology shortly after they is a new piece released, most of us cannot keep up with the change of technology, companies are forever coming up with new ideas. I personally think it is too expensive to try and keep up with the advances of new technology, with mobile phones for example; there is no point in purchases the new generation phone when you have a similar perfectly working phone already.

Social Divide

The social factor within the digital divide has helped to improve the communication of people through the use of the internet and many other kinds of technology. People today are able to use the internet to communicate through using social networking sites such as Skype, Facebook and Twitter. These sites allow anyone to communicate no matter what the distance is just as long as they have internet connection. However, in poorer countries, they do not have access to the internet meaning they do not get the social benefit of being online, sharing photos and webcaming with others. Some people say that not having access to a social networking site is a good thing as people end up not actually communicating face to face with people.

The digital divide is a social issue referring to the amount of information between those who have access to the internet, especially broadband access and those who have no access whatsoever. This term became well known among concerned parties such as policy makers or scholars in the 1990’s.

There is many social concerns that effect the digital divide, this is not just within societies in LEDC’s either, this problem is spread across MEDC’s today also, this is set to continue unless serious steps are taken. Due to the inability to purchase new technologies it has led to a major split between communities. People who have the money are able to purchase computers, access to the internet and printers etc differ greatly who cannot afford to buy such goods. Due to the division across MEDC’s, this means people are going without access to a computer at all, this is not including their jobs. People who do not have internet access at home are what lead to the divide between social abilities.

The divide does not just involve those who do not own a computer, it involves those who can’t actually work a computer and use the internet efficiently, and those of an older generation are mostly clueless of how to do so. This has led to a large proportion of societies not using information technology. This restricts the older generation from being able to use services that computers and internet access have to offer.

Investments have been made within the ‘Digital Solitary Fund’ as mentioned before; this is one of the key ways in which the global divide has made an attempt to bridge the social problem. Government for example are funding schools and investing in further ICT education to attempt to resolve the problem and ensure it does not arise again.

The Fear of Technology

The fear of technology is aimed at people that have next to no clue on how to use a computer, this tends to be more people of the older generation. The older generation have witnessed the change in technology more than any other generation; they have experienced phone landlines, mobiles phones, computers and now tablets. The younger generation today have witnessed the change but have picked up on how to use the new technology far quicker than others. The generation below us will not have the opportunity to experience older things such computers, due to the fact a large majority of the population will be using tablets to operate daily and complete their work in the near future.

·         9.2 million adults in the UK have never used the internet, that’s 18% of the population.

·         27% of adults do not have internet access from home.

·         99% of 16-24 year olds have used the internet.

·         40% of people aged 65 or over have used the internet before.

However it is not just the internet which the older generation are afraid to use, it’s also mobile phones as they are far more complex than the average broadband landline.

Rather than just catering for the youth of today, the older generation have been addressed with the problem of the digital divide, for example the outreach centre has been created purely for older people to learn the ability of socializing and internet interaction. The outreach centre teaches people basis ICT skills and is taught by volunteers and students within the surrounding area.

Education and the divide

The digital divide is also influenced by the educational aspects. Education and computing has lead to the classroom in MEDC’s is far more advanced. The equipment used during lessons on a daily basis is technology that LEDC’s have not yet experienced, such as VLE, smart boards and projectors.

On the other hand, this variation of learning experiences is not available to all, those within an LEDC are affected by the digital divide, and they see a completely different learning experience. Most people in LEDC’s have no idea how to operate a computer, there is no one who is aware of how to do so meaning it could be a long time before it becomes a possibility.

Education is therefore highly influenced by computerisation, the advances within MEDC means that children have the privilege of a better learning environment. Therefore the effects of computing within education similarly substantial, as new technology tools will develop similarly.

Cultural Divide

The cultural divide represents how culture is changing within countries who have embraced computerisation. The cultural divide points out how people living in MEDC’s are adapting through the use of ICT, whereas LEDC’s are missing out. Within MEDC’s people use computers for several kinds of communication such as networking sites like Facebook. People can now use computers for all kinds of pursuits and programmes such as Photoshop; this allows individuals to progress in digital art.

There are a variety of business related uses for the computer which is constantly expanding, and programmes are used to the businesses advantage. Music can also be made on computers as well as video animations, design drawing and sketches. These are all prospects that people living within LEDC’s do not have the opportunity to experience as their countries either has limited wealth. All these pursuits are what people in MEDC’s have embraced and enjoy.

Advantages of the cultural divide:

• The digital divide allows for cheap labour within LEDC’s.

• This has benefits within MEDC’s as goods can be purchased for reduced prices, as labour costs are lower.
• As MEDC’s are significantly more developed, the LEDC are forced to buy technology off the more developed countries, therefore making MEDC more established and respected within the developing world.

Disadvantages of the cultural divide:

• The social divide reduces the online market within MEDC’s.
• The social divide and the nature of those affected means that only time will fully resolve the issue.
• Digital culture and information is not yet recorded and could be lost for ever. This is due to LEDC’s not digitally achieving their history, as they do not possess the means too. 

Bridging the Divide

There are now over two billion people globally who use the internet, access to conversations, debates and information online is improving. Between 2007 and 2011 the amount of online users doubled in developing countries. However, there is still a huge divide regarding access to the internet, only 20% of households in already developing countries use the internet daily. Even though technological advances have made internet access cheaper, bridging the digital divide is still a problem in both developed and currently developing countries.

India is one of the globes currently emerging countries, it has a population of about 1.2 billion, and only 121 million people are using the internet. Only 15% of internet users in India are female, the highest rate of internet usage occurs in India’s more prosperous cities. Internet access should increase the amount of smartphone access and usage continues to rise, this growth is dependent on whether digital education and literacy improves.

Moreover, the digital divide is still a problem in developed countries also, 30% of people are still not making use of the internet.

The united States have the second highest number of people online. Approximately 100 million Americans do not have access to high speed internet, meaning they miss out on any services or information that is moving on quickly. 19 million people cannot access high speed internet because services are not provided in certain areas yet.

The United Kingdom also has a high percentage of the population currently using the internet, this being about 84%. Digital access in the UK is dependent on whether the user is in a rural area.

· 8.2 million adults have never used the internet

· 8% of the lowest earners are not online

The use of smartphones is increasing rapidly, similarly to the number of people online. Internet access have grown by about 18% in the past year in developing countries, However, the amount of people using the internet in developed countries has started to level off. Even though improved and cheaper technology has helped eliminate the digital gap, more can still be done to convince more citizens to get on the internet.

In several countries, access to a telephone system is considered a necessity and the government should install various polices to offer affordable telephone services. Some countries today still lack sufficient telephone lines unfortunately.

There is also a widely shared opinion in current societies, that is being literate is essential to anyone wishing to pursue a career. Anybody who wishes to use a computer or have any access online needs to be able to read and spell , this is a problem for those in less developed countries and rural areas.

There are a variety of arguments regarding the closure of the digital divide, the major, arguments including the following:

Economic Equality

To some, internet access is a vital component of civil life, some developed countries aim to guarantee this for their citizens. The telephone is considered important for security aspects such as problems needing to be reported; this could be health or criminal emergencies. Any information is provided via the internet today.

Economic Growth

People say that development and active use of information infrastructure is a shortcut to economic growth within less developed nations. With the introduction of new technologies, industries within many countries are at a competitive advantage,

Social Mobility

The use of computers is an important role within ones education, learning and career, meaning schools for example should provide computing resources and internet access. Children within the lower socioeconomic status do not have access to much in comparison to those in developed countries. The government should offer some form of support to provide equal opportunities.

Democracy

People believe the use of the internet would lead to a healthier democracy regarding decision making.

Recession and the digital divide

More of the younger generation are starting to take interest in ICT; they no longer consider it ‘boring’. ICT is not becoming a requirement within you education, young people are now recognising it as a profession. Young people have realised that even basic ICT skills are essential to their long term employment prospects. Research by BCS says that young people’s attitudes to ICT as a career has changed greatly.

Those who are 30 years or younger who do not have a GCSE ICT qualification are more doubtful about their job prospects, this suggests the current recession is now increasing the ‘Employment Divide’. Research has proven that 57% of 16-30 year olds accept the fact that ‘those without ICT skills struggle at work’. It’s great that people with ICT skills can move forward with their career choice, but for those without these skills are unable to obtain the job or career they may want which is worrying.

People aged 30 and under were asked what area of IT would they like to build a career in.

·         36% said web

·         33% said computer games

·         25% said education and training

·         24% said software development

·         17% said network design

Civil Rights

Civil rights are the rights of individual to have equal treatment. Civil rights include several aspects such as education, employment, housing and religion. It also provides each person with the right to speak up for what they believe given they have freedom within the laws of the government. Many years ago there was a law called the ‘civil rights movement’ this was made for the African American race so that would be treated as equals regardless of colour. But today the term civil rights is now used to describe the improvement of equality of all people regardless of age, sex, disability, religion, national origin or any other characteristics.

There is the option to visit http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/ if anyone needs advice about their civil rights; this includes what the basic human rights were.

Civil rights in the UK

There are no official civil rights law in the UK. However legislation was posed during the 1970’s, this banned discrimination and has similar laws as the American Civil Rights Act. Britain has a legislation set out in the European Convention on Human Rights this governs civil rights, civil liberties and rights.

Human Rights Act

The human rights act was enforced in 1998; it is an act of parliament of the United Kingdom. Its aim is to give further effect in UK law to the rights contained in the European convention right. The European convention on human rights protects the human rights of people in countries that belong to the council of Europe, this includes the UK also. If any person happens to think their human rights under the European convention have been flouted, they are able to take the case to court but will need expert advice. This eliminates the need to go to the European court of human rights. Human rights are basic rights and freedoms that belong to every person in the world, the main human rights including:

·        The right to life

·        Protection from torture

·        Protection from slavery and forced labour

·        Right to respect for private and family life

·        Protection from discrimination

ICT and Civil Rights

There are acts and laws which have been put in place that protect computer users from hackers and fraud.  These acts are called the Data Protection Act of 1998 and the Computer Misuse Act of 1990.  They are specific laws for computers and data stored on computers which computer users must apply. 

The Data Protection Act

The data protection act was made to protect personal information.

However it only covers personal information about living individuals, not about businesses.

It covers data stored on computer or in a paper-based filing system.

It lets people check what data is being held about them.

It is run by the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Data Subjects are the individuals that the information is about and the Data Users are the big companies that collect, store and use the information. 

What rights do the data subjects have?

·        They have the right to see what information is being held about them if they ask the data user. They may have to pay for this.

·        Change any wrong information

·        Refuse to have a piece of information stored at all, if damage or distress is caused.

·        Refuse to allow processing for direct marketing such as junk mail.

·         Complain to the data protection commission if they think the rules have been broken.

·        Claim compensation if they can prove they have been used for damage

The companies that store the information have to obey the fact that the information has to be:

·        Fairly and lawfully processed

·        Used for limited purposes

·        Adequate and relevant. Only what is needed may be used

·        Accurate

·        Not kept for longer than is necessary

·        Accessible to the individual and able to be corrected or removed where necessary

·        Secure

·        Not transferred to countries without adequate protection

If any of these points are not being followed then the company storing the information can get in trouble with the Information Commissioners Office.

Companies need to keep their customer information secure otherwise it could get into the wrong hands, resulting in customers becoming victims of fraud or hacking.

There are also a few points that the data users have to obey and notify the information commissioner of, these are:

·        What data they want to store

·        What they want to use it for

·        How long they will keep it

·        Who they might pass it to

There are a few cases when the data protection act does not apply, these are called exemptions to the act.

Computer Misuse Act

The Computer Misuse Act (1990) was the second piece of legislation that was introduced to protect the rights of individuals. The Computer Misuse Act was introduced primarily to deal with computer hacking. It contains offences to do with unauthorised acts relating to computers.

The Computer misuse act was created after the Data Protection Act of 1984. Except this time it was the rights of computer users and computer owners that were being addressed, instead of the rights of data subjects. The Act was introduced in response to the growing problem of computer hacking and the wide spread of computer viruses.

As from September 1^st 1990 there was new computer misuse offences were introduced under this act, these being:

·        Unauthorised access to computer material, or in other words known as basic hacking, this including the illicit copying of software held in any computing device. The penalty for this being anything up to 6 months in prison OR a £5000 fine.

·        Unauthorised access with intent to commit or facilitate commission of further offences, which covers more serious cases of hacking. The penalty for this is 5 years in prison AND an unlimited fine.

·        Unauthorised modification of computer material is not acceptable; the penalty for this is five years in prison and an unlimited fine. These include:

·        Intentional and unauthorised destruction of software or data.

·        The circulation of "infected^" materials on-line.

·         An unauthorised addition of a password to a data file.

Biometric Passports

Biometric details include things that are unique to you such as your fingerprints and facial features such as the eye.

All passports hold facial biometrics, you must ensure your passport photographs meet the required standards; this is so your facial measurements can be captured to form the biometric element within your passport.

 How is the biometric passport used?

There is a chip containing all the biometric and personal details, this has an antenna which means it can be read electronically. Biometric checks can be used at border controls, especially at E- Passport gates, they can now also be used by the identity and passport service (IPS) to check the image on the passport with the images held on record.

The chip inside the passport contains information about the holders face, such as the distance between the eyes, nose, mouth and ears. The chip also holds the information that is printed on the personal details page of your passport.

Identification Cards

This card also contains your unique biometrics of your physically features such as your face and fingerprints, the card secures these details to you biographic details also, these including name, date of birth and address.

Anyone is able to apply for an ID card as long as they are 16 years of age or over, you apply for an id card in a similar way you would apply for a passport. 

An ID card is no bigger that a normal credit card and can be easily carried around making it a useful, convenient and portable object to have. On the face of the card there will be:

·        You photograph

·        Your full name

·        Your gender

·        Place and date of birth

·        Your nationality (applies to British citizens only)

·        An image of your signature

All new foreign nationals you are coming to the UK and those who are choosing to extend their stay in the UK for more than 6 months will have to get a card after 3 years.

The home office quotes that the new identification cards scheme will; “strengthen national security and protect people from identity fraud and theft by providing them with the convenient means of verifying their identity in everyday transactions”. It is said that by everyone having and ID card it will stop people claiming free services, of which they are not entitled to. It should make it more difficult for criminals to have multiply identities, therefore decreasing the possibilities of identity fraud.

Surveillance

Surveillance is the monitoring of behaviour and activities of people mainly for the purpose to manage direct and protect people. Surveillance has both positive and negative effects considering it has an unclear practice. There are several ways in which surveillance takes place, these being computer surveillance, telephones, cameras, socials networks, aerial surveillance, satellites and postal surveillance.