Nairobi — Because more people are using the Internet, new dynamics and challenges are emerging

With cyber cafes sprouting in every street corner, more and more people are becoming aware of the Internet.

Almost all small to medium-sized enterprises and as well as big corporations are connected to the Web. But what exactly do most people do on the Net, as it has come to be known.

Research indicates that pornography is by far the biggest reason most users get introduced and eventually hooked to the Net. One in every six , that is 15 per cent, of global websites host pornographic content which continues to be the biggest seller on the net, controlling an annual revenue base of over $12 billion. Another tool that is often abused is the Online Chat facility. Online chats enable users to enter virtual rooms and meet other Netizens or Internet citizens. The facility allows Netizens scattered across the globe to discuss topics that range from religion, gardening, shopping, sports to sex. The fact that one cannot actually see the person he or she is chatting with introduces new dynamics and challenges.

In chat-rooms, users often assume a different identity by using pseudo-names. With that, the stage is set for peddling lies, one after the other, as the Netizens try to outsmart each other in behaving badly. The Internet gives them an opportunity to be what they can never be in real life; to think, speak and express themselves often in the most negative sense possible and still get away without penalties.

In most cases, these chats are harmless except of course for the expenses involved and time wasted. However, in some cases, criminal activities have occurred. In the US, for example, a teenage girl while chatting online befriended a Netizen who eventually turned out to be a middle-aged jailbird. The criminal was actually serving a jail sentence during their 'e-courtship' but had presented an attractive profile as an upwardly mobile, tall, dark and handsome man in his 20s.

Of course, the lie eventually fell through but one can imagine the emotions, time and effort wasted as the young girl chased some non-existent Prince Charming. More serious cases have been reported where paedophiles have logged into children's chat rooms, pretending to be one of them. They have then nurtured and won the trust of the kids, eventually arranging face-to-face meetings with horrific and deadly ends. Criminals have taken their trade to cyberspace and they are exploiting the opportunities available with impunity.

What about those Nigerian e-mails? By now, most Netizens have come across mail talking about some rich West-African orphan or widow who needs assistance to move billions of dollars from one point to another. All he or she needs from you are two things: your confidentiality and your bank account details. It is amazing how this apparently common e-mail never fails to get a victim sooner rather than later. Given the above information, the said orphan or widow will lead you through endless loops carefully calculated to eventually leave you bankrupt.

And for those who have matured beyond Nigerian e-mails, there is something new on the block. It is known as phishing - pronounced 'fishing'. In a phishing attack, the victim is hit by genuine-sounding emails, complete with the correct source address. For example, if hackers are targeting Online banking, they will fake a source address so that e-mails appear to have come from the bank's headquarters. The mail will then have some realistic line such as: "Your online account has developed some technical issues and you are therefore required to e-mail your account details so that these issues can be sorted out as soon as possible."

Of course as soon as you hit the send button to dispatch your details, your account will be thoroughly cleaned out. You have just experienced what is known as digital mugging. It is worse than traditional mugging since you only learn about your depleted financial status days or even weeks after the event.

Cyberspace can indeed be more dangerous than reality. But that does not mean you stay offline. Such an action would be equivalent to saying you will not report to work tomorrow because Matatu-mania is back after a well-deserved, one-year commercial break. What you need, instead, is to be street-wise or cyber-smart - because life Online must continue.