Debate topic: With the Rise of Fake News and Hacking, Is Social Media Worth It?
The era of today is called the ‘digital era’. Science helped us discovering new scientific innovations for mankind. Lesser we were informed of its side effects. Digital devices continued to grow along with the wave of globalisation. We started utilising the science and digital technology for our convenience. Everything in this universe has loopholes, so does digital technologies. Although, humans were somewhat aware of these drawbacks in the initial stages. But, we weren’t exactly prepared to deal with it.
With the developing world, the evil elements of our society started working harder. They developed ways and techniques to get into our systems and devices. A new form of crime took place, known as ‘cyber crime’. Computer crime is aptly defined as a crime that is conducted online or over a network. These crimes usually target confidential information. The hackers steal sensitive data or information and manipulate it for their selfish deeds. These crimes are a real threat to humanity.
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Computer crimes are wide-ranging crimes that include identity theft, fake news, hacking, espionage, cross border terrorism, child pornography, child abuse, financial frauds, money extortion, sex trafficking, and many more. All these are illegal activities. The hackers want access to information which they aren’t supposed to see. Hacker can be high ranged or low ranged. A simple act of hacking will be to steal someone’s password and gasp their social media accounts. Another greater form of hacking is when the hackers trick the victim to produce the password. Hackers pretend to be real in the online world. They impersonate important persons such as your employer, your friend, authorities, etc.
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For instance – Recently, the Twitter account of the millionaire, Bill Gates was hacked. The hackers posted the tweet stating that Bill Gates will double the cryptocurrency money. The users got tricked into this and send their crypto address. The hackers earned $120000 out of his scam. Hence, it is proven that hackers can cause great havoc among innocent people and can reap a huge amount of profits from their scams and frauds.
So, here the question arises as to whether we should use social media or not. All those who are with motion point out that social media must be banned. Social accounts give a golden invitation to the hackers. The majority of scam is done by posting fake advertisements regarding products, job offers, real estate, etc. Unfortunately, banning these advertisements isn’t a good idea. A large amount of revenue for the social media sites is generated through marketing only. The only option which seems feasible is to avoid having an account on social media handles.
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Hackers can trick users anywhere and everywhere. We must remain alert while using digital devices. Social media is bridging the gap between the attackers and the victims. By shutting these connectivity platforms, we can widen this bridge. Social media is also responsible for promoting fake news without even verifying the elaborate details of the news. Fake news causes havoc among the people. They start panicking and it leads to further disorder in the state.
There are many consequences of fake news. People will start distrusting the media. The democratic processes will get disturbed. Social media also acts as a platform for various conspiracy theories. It is used as a medium to spread hate speeches. It spreads false and discredited science. For example – During the Coronavirus pandemic, the anti-vaccination movement became popular. Although there no shreds of evidence to support its claim. But people still believe in it.
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All those against the motion that out that social media is a great medium for staying connected. It keeps us informed about our friends and family members. The simple solution is to enforce the rules more strictly. The government must take credible action against the perpetrators of crime. Social media is giving a platform to people to express their views, opinions and ideas. It is an employment platform for many including social media influencers, entertainment geeks, marketing heads, etc. The attackers must be punished and not the victims and the citizens. Social media must not be banned. The hackers’ must be banned. These platforms are famous for content curation. Discussion forums are also part of social media.
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After reading both sides of this debate, it depends on you which side you are on. Read, understand and analyse thoroughly each side. It is a personal choice that whether you want to be a part of the social media world or not. Decide wisely!
