“In 2001, the International Telecommunication Union calculated that, approximately 2. 3 billion people had internet access at the end of that year. Since then, the percentage of people using the internet around the world has continued to grow” (Li 2). Censoring the internet has been a hot topic for quite a while now. Many people believe that censoring the web isn’t a good thing because of certain laws and rights we have as citizens. The internet has some cons but it also has many pros. The downside of the censorship is that the truth is blocked out and it violates our freedom of speech.
On the other hand, censorship of the internet can reduce the numbers or even stop human trafficking, prevent identity theft, stop cyber bullying and so much more. Even though it’s true that blocking out the truth isn’t the best idea, it’s just a little bump in the road when comparing to the big picture of how much it can help and save us. I strongly believe that censoring the internet could possibly make the world we live in a better place. Unpleasant situations on the internet happen on a daily that no one really knows about.
Murders, sex offenders, and all sorts of creepers roam the web by the second. “According to the US State Department, “Human trafficking is the third largest criminal enterprise worldwide, generating an estimated $95 billion in annual revenue” (qtd. in Home Security Report 2005). Human trafficking is the trading of people for sex or money. The traffickers lure these children in by talking to them over the internet, usually using social media, pretending to be someone they’re not. They get these kids to meet up with them in the middle of the night and after that they never see their families again.
If the web was censored human trafficking wouldn’t occur as much. Censoring the web would mean you wouldn’t be able to have any sort of social media accounts. Without Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat you have less of a risk of being trafficked. With no social media, traffickers don’t have the ability to prey on young adults and do as they please with them. Censoring the web could possibly reduce the number of humans being trafficked because there wouldn’t be any way of predators talking to the kids.
Reducing the number of traffickers also reduces the amounts of death caused by trafficking. Whether we want to believe it or not, censoring the web saves lives. “For the FBI, identity theft is nothing new. We’ve been dealing with criminals faking IDs for decades, from check forgers to fugitives on the run. But the threat is more pervasive and the scams more sophisticated than ever, including new online elements” (The FBI Federal Bureau of Investigation). Identity theft is a serious crime that happens every minute of the day.
There are approximately 15 million victims of theft a year. Without censorship hackers have easy access to any information they want. Hackers can pretend to be someone they’re not and get information from others without being caught. Censoring the web would mean there would be higher security measures when trying to access personal information. Censorship along with security can reduce the amount of incidents a year. If the web was censored, the government could catch hackers quicker because it would show as if something unusual is happening.
Censoring the internet can save many people from losing thousands of dollars due to identity theft. I don’t think people realize how much of an advantage censoring the internet would be. Finally, censoring the internet is life changing in more ways than we think. Along with possibly stopping human trafficking it can also stop cyber bullying. Cyber bullying is when people bully others via social media. According to statistics, 4,400 deaths are caused by cyber bullying each year. Bullies have the ability to say whatever they want using any device via the web without having to show their faces.
Some bullies post nude pictures of the victims all over the internet for the whole world to see. Most bullies bash their victims and it causes others to join in and also bash the victim. Yale University states “bullied victims are 7 to 9% more likely to consider suicide. ” Although that doesn’t seem like a high percentage, it is. Censorship can help bring those percentages down tremendously. With kids having no social media access it won’t be possible for others to post horrid things for millions to see. Yes there is a possibility of kids still being cyber bullied even without social media.
But as I stated with the identity theft incidents, the government would be able to catch on to these unusual acts quickly. Think about all the lives that would be saved if we did something as simple as censoring the web. There are many pros to censoring the internet but I also realize there are cons to it. Censoring the internet doesn’t allow individuals to know the truth about the world we live in. Also, it contradicts with our law of freedom of speech. Critics argue that if we’re blind to the world, it’s more dangerous than living in a world of truth.
Critics also say that by implementing a law on internet censorship, abusive government officials will get away with their wrong practices such as abuse of power and corruption” (Green Garage). Even though that might be true, the government will always do whatever it takes to hide certain information that could break them. In the end censoring the web will always be a tough topic to debate about. Experts have made very important points on why we shouldn’t censor the web but I still believe censoring it will be a huge advancement to everyone.
Censoring the web prevents human trafficking, cyber bullying and stops identity theft. It also ends things like the black market and the other illegal activities. The list of upsides that censoring the web has can go on forever. I think everyone can agree though that saving people lives and stopping criminals in the act is way more important than some “truth” that might be hidden from us. Censoring the internet will either make or break this world and in the end we have to decide whether it’s worth finding out.
