Advantages of the Internet

1. Faster Communication
The Internet is the greatest means of communication. Innovations are only making it faster and more reliable. Today, we can initiate real-time communication with someone who is far away. For more personal and interactive communication, it is possible to avail the facilities of video conferencing, chat and messaging services. With the help of these services, the geographically fragmented countries have come together to form a community that is able to share its thoughts on global issues, that affect everyone. The Internet has given us a common platform and medium to explore other cultures and ideologies.

2. Abundant Information Resources
The Internet offers knowledge on any given topic. Search engines make information accessible on various subject matters such as government law and services, trade fairs and conferences, market information, innovations and technical support, and even advice on love and relationship matters. It has become common practice to seek web assistance in order to find resources for homework, office presentations, and research.

3. Education
The Internet has become an essential source of getting knowledge, both via free and paid services. The credibility of this form of education is still problematic and depends on the quality and authenticity of content presented by each website. The entire scope of homeschooling has expanded because of increased accessibility to videos of teachers giving lectures, showing diagrams and explaining concepts. There are also sites like Wikipedia and TeacherTube sharing information, instructional videos and content for teachers and students. Although Skype is a commercial product, its free version is being used with increasing frequency in global education projects.

4. Entertainment for Everyone
Entertainment is one of the main reasons for surfing the Web. Finding the latest updates about celebrities and exploring lifestyle websites have become day-to-day activities of many Internet consumers. On the other hand, even celebrities are using the Internet effectively for promoting themselves and for keeping their fans happy. There are numerous games that can be downloaded. Indeed, online gaming has achieved dramatic and phenomenal popularity because of ever-increasing demand throughout the world.

5. Social Networking and Staying Connected
One cannot imagine a social life without Facebook or Twitter. These portals have become the means of staying in touch with friends and family and not losing track of the current events.
Apart from finding long-lost friends, the Internet also makes it easier to search and apply for jobs and get ample business opportunities. Besides, there are public chat rooms where users can meet new people. For those who are single, the Internet also provides the option to select a suitable dating partner through secure online profiles, which can be filtered as per your personal interests and preferences.

6. Online Services and E-commerce
Thanks to numerous monetary services, we can carry out all our financial transactions online. We can book tickets for a movie, transfer funds, pay utility bills and taxes without having to leave our homes or offices. Travel websites, for instance, offer quick booking schemes and plan itineraries according to their clients’ likes. E-commerce is used for all types of business deals that involve the transfer of money through the Internet. E-commerce, with its variety of products and services, makes it possible to have the clients’ orders delivered directly to their homes. Websites such as eBay allow customers to bid, buy, sell, and even auction products online.

Disadvantages of the Internet

1. Theft of Personal Information
The use of Internet for banking, social networking, or other services, often makes our personal information vulnerable to theft. There are no fail-proof ways of securing names, account numbers, addresses, photos, and credit card numbers from being stolen or misused by thieving websites and individuals. Needless to say, the damage caused by having our identities misused and our accounts broken into, is often irreparable and embarrassing.

2. Spamming
Spamming refers to sending unwanted e-mails, which serve no purpose and obstruct the computer system. Such illegal activities can be very frustrating as it makes it slower to access our email accounts and makes the entire service unreliable for consumers.

Spammers usually use bots that bombard the receiver with an endless line of advertisements. This can prove to be increasingly perplexing, as it keeps getting mixed with our more important emails. Fortunately, email service providers often have security systems to guard against spamming.

3. Malware Threats
One of the most annoying problems with the Internet is the ease with which any malware can infect computers. Internet users are often plagued by virus attacks that harm their computers and important files. Virus programmes are inconspicuous and may get activated simply by clicking a seemingly harmless link. Computers connected to the Internet are extremely prone to IP targeted virus attacks that may end up crashing the system completely.

4. Age-inappropriate Content
Pornography and age-inappropriate content is perhaps the biggest disadvantage of the Internet. The Internet makes uploading shocking content so easy, that we end up coming across inappropriate words and images even while surfing educational sites. All that parents can do, is lock harmful sites and monitor the sites viewed by their children.

5. Social Isolation, Obesity, and Depression
The biggest problem with having the Internet is its ability to create rifts between the real and virtual world. The virtual world can often seem so alluring that once hooked, going back to real life seems daunting. There is addiction to everything that pertains to the web and that includes excessive surfing, online gambling, social networking, and gaming addiction. There are now psychiatric clinics and doctors that specifically resolve problems created by the Internet. These addictions cause both physical and mental disorders that can lead to health complications if left unattended.