The Internet

The Internet, is it a Boon or a Bane? With the Dotcom gold rush and the advent of the Internet, the world has proliferated and grown more sophisticated. The Internet, just like the cellular phones and televisions, has become a need in this modern era. Closer to home, the introduction of the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) has boosted the numbers of Internet users in Malaysia. In fact, the cyberspace fever is still spreading, faster than we ever imagined. The Internet, once dominated by military intelligence, has brought changes into our lives. Although it was initially created as a communication system to outlast the fallout of a nuclear war, the Internet has been liberated. One needs only a telephone line and a computer equipped with a modem to explore cyberspace. Thus, knowledge is now easily and readily accessible. With just a simple surf to various search engines in the Net like Yahoo or AltaVista, we can get thousands of web addresses linked to the information we want. We can even download it and save it into our computer for free. Furthermore, communication via the Internet is very convenient and cheap. Net communities can congregate via e-groups or chat rooms with a very low cost. Discussions can be held online without the hassle of rushing to a meeting place. We can even contact our friends or relatives anywhere in the world easily by sending e-mails, which is much cheaper than the conventional "Snail Mail". Indeed, the Internet boom has made the world even smaller. Besides that, Internet-based companies, usually known as the Dotcoms, are sprouting everywhere, creating a new type of businesses. This so-called business of the new millennium is e-commerce. It is actually an online web portal created by the companies as a platform for them to provide their services or sell their products to everyone in the world without the need of launching new branches in other countries. In Malaysia, many Dotcom companies are formed due to the fact that we need these types of companies for our MSC project. Some meet failures while being formed, but those successful ones keep on earning big money from the benefits of e-commerce. However, cyberspace is no longer a safe zone. One of the major threats caused by the introduction of the Internet is pornography. A recent survey shows that 30% of the websites parked in the Net contain sexual-based images or materials. This pornography poisons the minds of the young. Their fresh minds have been corrupted by these negative elements. Some of them even get addicted and neglect their responsibility as a student. Though there are many kinds of censorship software in the market such as Net Nanny and Surf Watch, the government's policy of not censoring the Internet has affected the young very seriously. Therefore, a comprehensive study should be made in searching for the best solution. In addition, the crimes like hacking, cracking credit card numbers, spreading computer viruses and spamming have been a common topic lately. These done by unscrupulous people have caused a lot of damage and loss. A company's database can be destroyed in a split second and home users will have to send their computers to the service centers more often if these people keep keep on exploiting the Internet. Besides, to understand more deeply about our national cyber awareness, one must surf the websites. Some of these websites sell a mixture of rumors, propaganda and amateur political analysis. These half-truths especially by the anti-government movements have created a certain havoc in the nation. The citizens and the international communities seem to receive false news about our country, which will affect our economy and political stability. Thus, there are many advantages of the Internet. But the current "migraine" suffered from the exploitation of the Internet should not be taken for granted. Government should take serious measures to handle the problems and make the Internet a safer place for everybody to explore.