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Legislation Many countries have laws to protect people against the misuse of emails. Figure 10.1 is a guideline on what
these laws often require companies and individuals to do when sending out emails. The laws cover the use of emails and
highlight a number of constraints; these will all be covered in this part of the chapter.

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Acceptable language depending on the purpose of your email and your intended audience
, your messages might be formal, casual or brief.

The language used by people when writing emails should follow an acceptable code of practice. The following is
a list of unacceptable content to be used in emails, text messages and online forums:

» obscene images
» language that is regarded as abusive, profane, inflammatory, coercive, defamatory or blasphemous
» racist, exploitative or violent messages
» use of illegal materials or messages. This list does not cover everything, but gives some idea of what is not acceptable
when sending emails.

It is not regarded as adequate that recipients can simply delete images or messages. It is essential that anyone writing
emails, or posting messages on bulletin boards, etc. is aware of the above constraints.
Guidelines set by an employer It is imperative that any company (no matter how small or large) that employs people
publishes guidelines regarding use of emails and other electronic communications. Guidelines must follow the laws in the
particular country in which the company operates. Companies must indicate how they will ensure that all of their staff are
following the rules. Figure 10.2 shows an example of the kind of things that might be included within a company’s guidelines.
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Copyright and security of emails
It is very important to realise that emails are subject to copyright laws. Just because it is relatively easy to forward
an email does not mean it is always legal to do so. This is also true of any attachments sent with an email.

As with web pages, the copyright in an email is determined by its content. Printing, copying or forwarding emails is
generally not considered a breach of copyright unless the sender has indicated clearly that the message is
confidential or the subject of copyright law.

It is important that the recipient checks this out before forwarding it on to somebody else. Most companies or
organisations will clearly set out their policies on sending emails and the material that they contain.

This will be particularly true if the sender’s email address is part of the company’s name, for example,
A.N.User@company_name.com.

Emails and attachments from companies and organizations will usually contain some copyright statement, such as:
Any dissemination or copying of this email or attachment is strictly prohibited unless you are the intended recipient
or are responsible for delivering the message to the intended recipient. If you have received this email in error,
please let us know and then delete the original email and any attachments.

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It is common for the message to then make some statement that the views and opinions in the email may not represent
those of the company, and that the contents may be subject to disclosure under any Freedom of Information legislation.
Companies are clearly very concerned about any potential risk of copyright infringement.

Security and password protection

It is very important to consider the security of emails. Many security aspects have been covered elsewhere in this book but
some of the factors to consider are repeated here for completeness. Some methods of increasing the security of emails
include:

» using strong passwords when logging on to your email account (for example, the name of your pet is a weak password;
strong passwords contain a combination of letters, numbers and other symbols: Sy12@#TT90kj=0 would be regarded as a
strong password)

» changing passwords on a regular basis

» using spam filters to remove certain suspicious emails to a ‘junk folder’ or even to block the email entirely

» running anti-virus and anti-spam software at all times on your computer, to protect against emails from unknown or
malicious sources.

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Emails are said to be vulnerable to both passive and active attacks. Passive attacks include the release of email material to
other users without your consent. Active attacks involve the modification of your messages or even denial of service (that
is, overloading your system by sending thousands of emails, which basically ‘clogs up’ your computer and makes internet
access almost impossible). Active attacks can also involve viruses or phishing attacks (these are covered elsewhere in the
book).

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• Explain why email groups are used (syllabus)

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Forwarding of emails should be treated with great care. Suppose your name is Dave and you work for a company with the
domain hothouse-design.co.uk. You have been given a company email address box where all your emails are received:

dave@hothouse-design.co.uk.

You have decided to forward all of your emails to dave2468@yahoo.com where you can read them at your leisure. This
means that all your emails, including spam, will be sent to this yahoo address.
Two problems exist here:
1 Some internet service providers (ISPs) do not recognise the true source of emails and regard all emails as actually coming
from the hothouse-design.co.uk domain, including spam, because they will have been forwarded from that domain.

2 Some ISPs have spam filters in place based on email volumes from just one address.

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Both outcomes are undesirable, because there will now be an increased risk that many of the emails sent to the Yahoo
address will be spam. You could end up being blacklisted by your ISP. For this reason, many web hosts are now putting a
ban on the email forward feature.

Attachments Always treat attachments with great caution. Spam and phishing (see Chapter 8) emails can potentially
contain malicious attachments. Your computer can become infected if the attachment contains an executable file.
Examples of executable files are those ending in: .exe, .msi, .bat, .cmd, and so on.

It is also important to remember when sending attachments that the ISP will have a limit on the size of file that can be
sent. Emails were never intended to include large files. It is probably better to look at alternatives when sending large
files, such as:
» file compression
» selecting a web service that allows files to be transferred: upload the file(s) and then create a link. This link can be
sent in an email and the recipient can then easily download very large files by clicking on it.

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 Who Can Remind Us about Spam Meaning ?
Spam Meaning :
Any unsolicited email sent over the internet is regarded as spam.
Spam Charactersitics::
1. It is often sent to multiple recipients and can range from being simply annoying to dangerous, because spam can contain
viruses or be part of a phishing scam (see earlier chapters). 2. Spam can affect many online operations (for example, YouTube)
where links (called ‘spambots’) are posted within videos which send users to another website. 3. While some regard spam as a
cheap way of advertising to many people at the same time, most people consider it to be a big nuisance.

The main disadvantages are:

» It uses up people’s time.
» It generally annoys people.
» It uses up valuable bandwidth on the internet, slowing it down.
» It can have viruses attached or even be part of a phishing scam.
» It can clog up users’ inboxes.
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10.2 Effective use of the internet
This section will consider the effective use of networks, such as the internet, intranets and extranets. This will include many of
the features of each type of network.

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1. The word internet comes from INTERconnected NETwork, because it is basically a worldwide collection of interconnected
networks.
2. The internet as a whole is actually a concept rather than something tangible (that is, something we can touch).
3. However, it relies on a physical infrastructure that allows networks and individual devices to connect to other networks and
devices.

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In contrast:
The World Wide Web (WWW):

1. Is only a part of the internet which users can access using web browser software.
2. The World Wide Web consists of a massive collection of web pages, and has been based on the hypertext transfer
protocol (http) since 1989.
3. The World Wide Web is a way of accessing information using the internet; so, the internet and the World Wide Web are
actually quite different.

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Intranet:

Many companies use an intranet as well as the internet.

An intranet is defined as ‘a computer network based on internet technology but designed to meet the internal needs for

sharing information within a single organisation or company’.

Access to an intranet is usually confined to a company or organisation and, unlike the internet, is not available to the

general public.

Intranets reside behind a firewall and are only accessible:

» Internally to members of the company

or
» To people given various levels of access who are external to the company (see later).

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There are a number of reasons for adopting intranets rather than using the internet:

» Intranets are safer because there is less chance of external hacking or viruses.
» It is easier to prevent external links to, for example, certain websites.
» Companies can ensure that the information available is specific to their internal audience’s needs.
» It is easier to send out sensitive messages in the knowledge that they will remain within the company.
» Intranets offer better bandwidth than the internet, therefore there are fewer connection limits than with the internet
(that is, the number of bits per second that can be transmitted are usually higher within an intranet).

It is also possible to create extranets that allow intranets to be extended outside the organisation, but with the same
advantages as an intranet; this allows, for example, trading partners to have controlled access to some information
(commercially-sensitive information is password protected).

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Past Paper Question (Important)

» As discussed, the term internet comes from the phrase: INTERconnected NETwork.

» The term intranet comes from the phrase: INTernal Restricted Access NETwork.

» An intranet is used to give local information relevant to the company or organisation; whereas the internet covers everything.

» It is possible to block out certain websites using the intranet; while this is also possible with the internet, it is more difficult.

» An intranet often requires a password and user ID, and can only be accessed from agreed points/computers; whereas the

internet can be accessed by anyone from anywhere in the world, provided the user has an ISP account.

» An intranet is behind a firewall, which gives some protection against hackers, viruses, and so on; there is much less protection

against hackers and malware when accessing the internet.

» Information used in intranets is usually stored on local servers, which makes it more secure from outside users for the same

reasons as above.

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 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjwUHXoi8lM

Web logs (blogs) Meaning:

are personal internet journals where the writer (blogger) will type in their observations on a topic (for example, a review
about the latest movie release) and perhaps provide links to some relevant websites.
Blogs tend to range from minor projects (such as the performance of a rock star) through to important social issues.
However, the comments made on blogs are NOT immune from the law; bloggers can still be prosecuted for writing offensive
material.

» Updated on a regular basis by the author

» Usually organised in reverse chronological order ‫( ﺗرﺗﯾب ﻋﻛﺳﻲ‬most recent to least recent entry)
» Normally public – anyone can read them
» Entries normally come from a single author
» Other internet users cannot change blogs – they can only read them.
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Microblogs
Microblogs are similar to blogs, but are most often used on social networking sites to make short, frequent posts.
The posts can be done: using instant messaging, emails or use other social networking vehicles (such as tweets).
Social networking sites use microblogs to allow members to update their personal profiles, for example. Another version is a
b-blog – short for business blog – which is used by businesses to promote themselves on the internet.

Wikis are :
web applications or websites that allow any user to create and edit their web pages using any web browser. A wiki will
support hyperlinks and uses a very simple syntax (known as wiki markup) to create pages. They have often been described as
‘web pages with an button’.

Features of wikis:
» Anyone can edit, delete or modify the content
» Many authors can be involved in a wiki
» It is possible to organise a page any way the author(s) wish(es)
» Shows/keeps track of all entries – that is, stores a document history
» Can be easily edited using a web browser
» Allows large documents to be seen by many people – it is easier than emailing several people.

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Social networking sites
Social networking sites focus on building online communities of users who share the same interests and activities. They enable
people to share photos, videos and music, hobbies, favourite eating places, and so on. The members do this by creating public
profiles and thus form relationships with other users. The potential dangers of such sites were covered earlier in Chapter 8.

Features of social networking sites:

» Each member is provided with free web space.
» Each member can build their own private and public profiles.
» It is possible to upload content such as text messages, photos and videos.
» It is possible to ‘write on each other’s walls’.
» Members are given free instant messaging and video chatting.
» It is possible to email other members within the community.
» Members can create pages where they can post photos, articles, and so on.
» It is possible to invite people to become friends.
» Members have control over who can access their private or personal data.
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 Un moderated Forums:
A moderated forum refers to an online discussion forum The internet is essentially a huge unmoderated forum. No one
in which all the posts are checked by an administrator ‘owns’ the internet, and it is essentially not policed.
before they are allowed to be posted.

The only real safeguards are a voluntary cooperation

Many users prefer this type of forum, compared to an between the users and the network operators.
unmoderated one Why? :
as the moderator can not only prevent spam, but can also However, most social forums or networking groups on the
filter out any posts that are inappropriate, rude or internet have a set of rules or protocols that members are
offensive, or even those that wander off the main topic. requested to follow or they will be deleted.

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This section will consider how it is possible to access the internet and use some of its features.

1. An internet service provider (ISP) is a company that provides users with access to the internet.
2. It is normal to pay a monthly fee for this service.
3. When a user registers with an ISP, an account is set up and they are given login details that include a user ID and
password.
4. An ISP has the equipment and telecommunications lines required to access the internet – usually broadband
connections which, in many cases, use fibre optic cables.

A web browser is software that allows a user to display a web page on their computer screen. They interpret or translate the
HTML from websites and show the result of the translation. This can often be in the form of videos, images or sound.

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Most web browsers share the following features:
» They have a home page.
» They have the ability to store a user’s favourite websites/pages (known as bookmarks).
» They keep a history of the websites visited by the use (known as user history).
» They allow users to navigate backwards and forwards through websites.
» They have hyperlinks that allow users to navigate between web pages; these hyperlinks are shown as
blue_underlined_text or use a small picture, such as a pointed finger , under a phrase or image; by clicking on these
hyperlinks the user is sent to another website or web page.

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Web browsers use uniform resource locators (URLs) to access websites, retrieve files, and so on. URLs are text addresses used
to access websites. A URL is typed into a browser address bar using the following format:

An error will occur if any part of the URL is incorrect. Most frequently, error page ‘HTTP 404’ will display on the computer
screen.
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One of the most useful and powerful aspects of the internet :
Is the ability to easily search through vast amounts of information on almost any given topic.

There are basically two ways of locating information from the internet:
1. The first way is to type in the URL if you know the name of the website you wish to access.
2. The second method is to use a search engine if you do not know where to find the information you are looking for.

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» Saved as a favourite and accessed when required
» Added as a hyperlink in a document
» An image of web page can be saved by using ‘print screen’ in windows (or the equivalent – it varies between operating
systems) and then pasted into a word-processor page
» Information from the web page can be copied and pasted the into another document.

It is very important to acknowledge your sources of information when using information from a website in your own work,
both to avoid plagiarism and because the information will be subject to copyright. As we have already said, the internet is a
vast and very useful source of information, but it is important to be aware of its disadvantages as well as its advantages.

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» Information on the internet tends to be up to date because it is quicker and easier to amend web pages than it is to, for
example, reprint books.
» The internet has vast, almost limitless, amounts of information.
» Searching for information using a search engine is fast and easy.
» People can look for information in the comfort of their own home – there is no need to travel to a library to find required
books.
» Information on the internet is essentially free of charge.
» Pages on the internet can have multimedia elements (for example, videos, animations, cartoons and music/voiceovers)
that make learning more interesting and often makes it easier to understand the topics.

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» The internet is not regulated – anything can be posted on a web page and, consequently, information may be biased or
totally incorrect (books, on the other hand, usually undergo some form of review before being published).
» There is always the risk of accessing inappropriate websites when using search engines; these can take many forms and can
be very distressing to certain people.
» It is too easy to be distracted when searching on the internet – users can find computer games or enter social
networking sites instead of doing their work.
» There is always the risk of ‘information overload’ if the user lacks the necessary experience or expertise when using search
engines.
» Because it is very easy to copy material from the internet, there is a huge temptation to plagiarise material; this is more
likely to occur than when using books.
» Some research skills are lost when using the internet as search engines do all the work for you.

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When using search engines, there is always the danger of information overload. It is possible to find millions of websites that
match the given criteria. Unless the user narrows down their search criteria, it can take a long time to find out exactly what
they are looking for (see Figures 10.9 to 10.11). Also, if the user is uncertain of what needs to be asked, it can take a long time
to obtain only relevant information. Each search engine has to decide what they think is the most appropriate result for a
search query. Exactly how each search engine decides on the rank of their search results is kept top secret. But search results
may not always contain exactly what the user is looking for – more appropriate websites might be hidden deep within the
search results. Search engines also rank the time it takes to load up pages from websites – the fastest are given priority when
the results appear on the screen. All of this means that the user may not find exactly what they are looking for when using
the search engine. It is common to assume that if the first page of search results does not contain what the user was looking
for then it does not exist. This is not true. It might be that the search engine misunderstood what the user was looking for –
or it might have listed the correct website on the eleventh page of search results.
The actual operation of search engines is very complex and is beyond the scope of this book.

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10.2.4 How to evaluate information found on the internet

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Many of the risks associated with using the internet have been raised in this and earlier chapters. As long as users take all of
the precautions covered in this book, they should find the internet a safe, enjoyable and very useful source of entertainment
and material. Unfortunately, the internet does contain inappropriate material, some of which is criminal in nature. Many
users seem to think that because the internet is not policed, then they are unlikely to be prosecuted. This is of course untrue.
To prevent inappropriate material finding its way on to the internet, should there be some form of control? Figures 10.13 and
10.14 detail some of the arguments.

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There are additional precautions that can be taken:
» ISP companies give the ‘bill payers’ some control over what can be accessed. It is possible for concerned parents, for
instance, to put filters onto the central router. This can prevent unnamed devices from accessing the internet through their
router, or prevent named devices from gaining access to certain websites.

» Similarly, mobile phone companies offer a similar service and can block access to certain websites. It is not fool-proof,
but is an additional safety net.

» Schools and textbooks can also play their part by educating users about the correct use of the internet – what to look out
for and what precautions to take. Teachers are an excellent source of information; if a student wishes to access a new
website, it is always worth checking with the teacher first to see if it is safe to go online and access the website

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 Questions
At the end of the chapter

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(a) Two from:
Browser to access bank’s website [1]
ISP to have access to internet
11 Three from:
– It is a form/type of blog
– Shorter in length than a normal blog
– Consist of short sentences
– Posts are called microposts
– Accessed by subscribers
Four from:
Can be a website/software
Users can create/add content/pages
Users can modify content/pages
Users can delete content/pages HTML

Using a web browser

Using a simplified mark-up language/a rich-text editor
Are often created collaboratively by multiple users
Examples include community websites, corporate intranets,
knowledge management systems [4]
Criteria :
Number of Authors / personal use or public / you can edit or not ; writing comment just

Three from:
Blog usually has a single author/ a Wiki usually has many authors
Blog is usually in reverse chronological structure/ a Wiki has a structure determined
by content and users
Blog is usually personal/someone’s opinion/ a Wiki is usually objective
Can’t edit a blog/ a Wiki can be edited/ Can only add comments to a blog
Discuss the use of blogs and social networking sites as means of communication.

Six from:
Blog is public/anyone can see it
Blog is online diary/personal opinions
Viewers can only add comments on blogs/authors can reply to comments
Only author can edit blog
Social networking sites might only be available to friends of user
Social networking site enable users to send messages to small group of ‘friends’ to
arrange meetings
Friends can respond more quickly to messages within the group to confirm
availability
Easier to share photographs with others
Social networking sites can lead to seclusion from society
Social networking sites can lead to cyber bullying