Denial of Service

DoS is where servers stop providing service to its customers, an example would be when you have lot of people all trying to access one website at once, the server can’t handle it and collapses so therefore no-one can get on it. Other ways off attacking could be in a physical way by unplugging a server from the network if they have access. If they are not able to unplug the server physically, then they could send large armies of zombie computer viruses to start a large scale attack against the target. To prevent a DoS attack you can download a software called 'dot-defender', this software inspects your HTTP traffic and checks the packets against the rules such as allowing or denying protocols or IP addresses to stop web applications from being exploited. This software is easily downloaded within a few clicks, it is very strong against attacks and doesn't need any hardware to be installed. Reasons why someone might want to launch a DoS attack are that it might be a criminal attempt to blackmail an online company. Another reason would be if someone didn't agree with a websites political views, they would launch a DoS attack as a way of expressing this. They might not even have a reason to launch the attack, they could pick a random domain and launch the attack.

Global Implications

Global implications are similar to local and national but it’s the 3^rd world countries that don’t have the internet, this is called the digital divide. The digital divide is a phrase used in America which refers to inequalities in countries, individuals & household’s etc. Many aspects of society such as teaching/educating rely on the internet and computer technology. Countries who do not have access to these are slowly getting left behind as the the rest of the world moves onto more technical things. They have tried a number of projects like 50x15 where they set up a charity to help people in Haiti get over the earthquake and now support them long-term.

Privacy of infomation

Privacy is seen in two ways, when you have trouble at home for example and you don’t want people to know, so it keeps your life private. On the other hand your birth certificate, passports, healthcare notes, etc. all are kept private as people can copy your details and pretend to be you. This is all down to the ‘Data Protection Act 1998’, where it makes sure you don’t get your details stolen. Most of this information is kept on computers, so personal privacy has become an issue with all the hackers. Almost everything in your life is on a computer; your medical records, your date of birth, what number you are calling and even what you bought at the supermarket. None of this is allowed to be released due to the 'Data protection act 1998'.

Copyright and Plagarism

Copyright is where you have legal rights over something and no-one is allowed to copy or take your idea without permission. If so you will get done for plagiarism, as this is illegal. The copyright law also known as ‘Copyright Act 1976’ makes it illegal for anyone to take the persons info or anything, without the owners say so. With films and music available to download over the internet, it has become very easy to steal stuff that has been copyrighted, without even being caught. Many websites allow people to use a torrent downloader to retrieve these files for example programs like Utorrent and Vuze. To do so you have to download the torrent and open it, when opened it will go straight into one of these (depending which one you downloaded) and it will  start to download. Another way of plagiarism is people copying and pasting work off the internet and submitting it as their own. Quoting there source information is fine as long as you do not try to bypass it as your own.

Ownership

Having legal control over some information or an object and being the only one able to use this, where no-one is allowed to copy it. For example songs are owned by the song writer, if someones takes the back tune or the lyrics without consent they can done for plagiarism. This applies to books, films and work. Having ownership of something gives you full responsibility, you can rent, sell, use, give away etc.

Sustainability

Since the start of era of computers, we use so much electricity it contributes to global warming and the greenhouse effect. Newer computers are invented and there is nowhere for the old ones to go. They are just left out in the open or recycled which thankfully doesn’t harm the environment. (Weee Directive) Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive is a company that recycles and takes in old and unused electrical goods to reduce the damage to the rest of the world when getting rid of these appliances. When people purchase a new piece of electrical equipment with a way of disposing the equipment they are getting rid of, without having it just lying around for it to go to waste.

Employment structure and working practises

A lot of people would become unemployed and job vacancies will decrease due to everyone ordering their shopping, clothes etc. over the internet. Everyone will be too lazy to go shopping so the shops wouldn’t need employees causing people to lose their jobs. But this opens up vacancies for companies needed website designers and it technicians to manage their website in case there is faults. Every job has a vacancy that has something to do with the it industry, it is a major part of every company. It’s much easier nowadays to let someone know they have lost their job or been made redundant, a simple phone call, email or text without going through all the trouble to say it to the persons face. Working at home is a major positive when working in the IT industry, you can work the hours when you want, have breaks when you want but still get the work done. Another positive would be you can have interviews through Skype or another Instant messaging program that allows video calling.

Effect on local communties

The shops with Website to order from would most probably close down as everyone will be ordering over the net. The shops wouldn't be getting any trade profit because everyone’s ordering online making the shop become bankrupt and not being able to pay their employees so the shop closes down, therefor all workers losing their jobs and becoming unemployed (redundant). 

How I Spend My Free Time

During my free time I like to spend time on computers and on social networking websites like Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. I like going on these websites as it keeps me up to date with my friends activities and lets me know what everyone's doing, vice versa for them to know what i'm doing. Also in my spare time i like play computer games on Xbox like Fifa and Call of Duty, doing this i am also socializing with friends. Listening to music in my spare time is another one of my favorite things to do. I listen to music of YouTube, iTunes or Spotify. You never had any of this back in the 1980’s, they had no way of getting in contact, they had to knock for their friends to get them out. Instead of playing computer games like Call of duty they were playing board games like monopoly for entertainment. It’s better now we are in the twenty first century, as we can communicate with our friends over the internet. But social networking websites like Facebook, and instant messaging programs like windows live messenger (Two of the most used things on the internet) are the main gateways to cyber bullying, this is biggest downside for things like this. On the other hand, whilst doing all of this I like to play on my blackberry, phones have changed drastically overtime. Instead of texting or ringing my friends, i can BBM (Blackberry messenger them) which is basically an instant messaging program that allows you to talk to other people with Blackberry's for free. I also do a lot of online shopping as I am too lazy and busy to go to the shopping center itself, so retail stores that have websites are a big love of mine as I don't have to do anything other that click what I want.

Local and National Implications

Local and national implications are rural areas that live too far away from the telephone exchange so they can’t get broadband. This is due mainly to costing a lot of money to lay the cables for a small number of customers, plus older people find it hard to cope with the new 
technology and they wouldn't be able to work it. Therefor companies feel as if it would be a waste of internet and their time. Plus these people who live in Local and National implication areas, are missing out on cheaper economic services, as some companies offer internet goods that are cheaper than the original services. For example things like gas and electricity. One thing you should remember that internet is not free, and some families might just not be able to afford it.

Cyber Bullying

Bullying is enhanced by IT because kids can bully other people over the internet, intimidating them through the computer screen.  You can bully someone without even meeting them, this occurs frequently on social networking sights. Cyber bullies often encourage there friends to join in and become cyber bullies them selves.  This is a big problem in social networking sites, as its such a big website they wouldn't just shut it down when it used by over a billion people, just  because a couple of cyber bullies. They encourage the people getting bullied to talk to their parents.c

Spam

Spam, also known as junk mail, is where you get unwanted emails sent to you from people/company’s you don’t know, some contain viruses and some are just genuinely annoying. Most emails have a junk folder, where you can send spam emails to and you won’t get any emails from that address sent direct to your inbox. If you receive an email with a dodgy attachment, think twice before opening it as this could be a virus.

Phishing

Phishing is a technique used by hackers to scam people for their passwords. It is very similar to actual fishing as the rod and hook represents the website and the people they are scamming are the fish. This can be easily done and people fall for it very easily. If you don’t watch what you are doing you could give away your passwords to them and they could use them and access their account. Many people use phishing to hack peoples Xbox accounts or emails, or maybe even Facebook accounts. Phishing websites are not hard to make either, anyone could do it. The scam comes from scammers sending people emails which looks like it has come from their bank, trying to persuade them into providing their banking password and security details for example.  It has a link which sends them to a page which looks like the log on page with the domain slightly changed. The information they write into the login section get sent straight to the hackers. In a matter of seconds they have their details.