Internet is a

Boon or Bane?
Done By: Grace Magdalene Leong Li Bin, Gilbert Chong Kai Jing, Cheok
Rui April
From The User’s
Point Of View
 Advantages Of The
Internet
1. Communication:
By the advent of computer’s Internet, our
earth has reduced and has attained the
form of a global village.
We can communicate in a fraction of second
with a person who is sitting in the other
part of the world.
We can avail the facilities of e-mail and
messenger services in offering to
communicate with our loved ones or
business associates.
With help of such services, it has become
very easy to establish a kind of global
 Advantages Of The
Internet
2. Information:
The Internet is a virtual treasure trove of
information. Any kind of information on any
topic under the sun and known to man is
available on the Internet.
With the help of search engines like Google
or Yahoo, one can almost find any type of
data on almost any kind of subject that one
is looking for.
Today, it is almost required that students
should use the Internet for research
purposes. Teachers have started giving
assignments that require research on the
 Advantages Of The
Internet
3. Entertainment:
Media of internet has become quite
successful in trapping multifaceted
entertainment factor.

With the internet, once can easily download

games or software, visit chat rooms, surf
the Web, exchange songs, and even catch
up on the latest news.

Example: Facebook is a social utility that

connects people with friends and others
who work, study and live around them.
People use Facebook to keep up with
 Advantages Of The
Internet
4. Services
Many services are now provided on the
internet such as online banking, job
seeking, match-making, purchasing movie
tickets, guidance services on array of topics
engulfing the every aspect of life, and even
hotel reservations.

Often these services are not available off-

line and can cost more.

With the help of such services, one is able

to save traveling time and easily make
transactions from home or work. This aids
 Advantages Of The
Internet
5. E-Commerce:
Apart from retrieving information from the
internet, one is also able to purchase items
from the internet.
There are many online shops or sites that
one is able to find products from, as well as
purchase these products with a credit card.
With E-Commerce, there is no need to leave
the house, and can do all kinds of shopping
from the convenience of one’s home.
Example: Cold Storage has provided an
online shopping experience for busy
individuals who do not have time for their
Disadvantages Of The
Internet
1. Theft of Personal information:
By using the Internet, one may be facing
grave danger as personal information such
as name, address, credit card number etc.
can be accessed by other hackers.

This might cause problems such as the

uncontrolled use of one’s credit card in
purchasing, or the use of identity for
unsolicited activities without one’s
knowing.

Electronic messages sent over the internet

can be easily snooped and tracked,
Disadvantages Of The
Internet
2. Spamming:
Spamming refers to sending unwanted e-
mails in bulk, which provide no purpose and
needlessly obstruct the entire system.

Most spam mails include commercial

advertising mostly for dubious products,
get-rich-quick schemes, pornography or
quasi-legal activities.

Other than e-mail spamming, there are

Instant Messaging Spam, Newsgroup spam
and forum spam, Online game messaging
spam, Blog, wiki, and guestbook spam,
Disadvantages Of The
Internet
3. Virus Threat:
Virus is nothing but a program which
disrupts the normal functioning of your
computer systems.

Computers attached to internet are more

prone to virus attacks which can end up
into crashing your whole hard disk, or the
loss of information on your computer.

Examples of virus threat: Spyware,

Malware, Y2k Virus, Trojans
Disadvantages Of The
Internet
4. Pornography:
This is the biggest threat for a child or
teenager’s mental life.

There are thousands of pornographic sites

on the Internet that can be easily found and
can be a detrimental factor when children
or teenagers use the Internet.

Most pornography sites are accompanied

by Malware, Spyware, and Trojans which
might disrupt a computer’s function
without one knowing.
Disadvantages Of The
Internet
5. Addictions:
Prolonged usage of the internet can form
unhealthy addictions not only for children,
teenagers, but for adults as well.

This might cause withdrawal, loss of

relationships or job, significant time
consumption, sleep deprivation, decrease
in performance, and even negative effects
on family relationship because of the
reduction in communication and personal
bonding.
 From The
Business
Point Of View
 Advantages Of The
Internet
24-7: With the internet, businesses are able
to operate online 24 hours daily. As such,
one’s physical storefront does not need to
be open in order for customers and
suppliers to be doing business
electronically.

Human Strength: Company size will be

relatively less important as computers are
able to accomplish tasks that are normally
done by humans.

Global Marketplace: The Internet spans the

world, and it is possible to do business with
any business or person who is connected to
 Advantages Of The
Internet
Speed: Electronic communications allow
messages to traverse the world almost
instantaneously i.e. there is no need to wait
weeks for a quotation to arrive by post
Operational Benefits: This include reducing
both the time and personnel required to
complete business processes, and reducing
strain on other resources.
Costs Reduction: E-Commerce helps reduce the
delivery time, labor cost, and the cost incurred
in the following areas: 1. Document
preparation2. Error detection and correction3.
Reconciliation4. Mail preparation5. Telephone
calling6. Data entry7. Overtime8. Supervision
expenses
Disadvantages Of The
Internet
Training and Maintenance: The need to
constantly update the business website
may lead to extra labor costs, training and
retraining costs

Security: An E-commerce business exposes

itself to security risks and may be
susceptible to destruction and disclosure of
confidential data, data transfer and
transaction risks (as in online payments) or
virus attacks.

Distribution: Distribution must be very

efficient especially when catering to a
global market.
Disadvantages Of The
Internet
Website Stickiness and Customer Loyalty: A
company can have a website and exist
within the Internet but there may not be
enough people visiting the site and
purchasing services or products from the
company.

Mechanical Failure: Mechanical failures can

cause unpredictable effects on the total
processes.

Training: The company needs well-skilled

and trained workers to maintain and create
the ecommerce facilities of the company.
Hence, many companies prefer to outsource
 Conclusion:
Though the internet can create havoc,
destruction and its misuse can be very
fatal, the advantages of it outweigh its
disadvantages.
That said, the internet is a boon than a
bane.