THE World Wide Web Foundation has revealed that 4.3 billion people have no access to the Web at all, whilst at least 1.8 billion more face severe violations of their rights to privacy and freedom of expression when they go online.
While an additional 225 million live in countries where ability to pay may limit the content and services they can access, according to the 2014-15 edition of the Web Index.
The index which was released today is the world’s first measure of the World Wide Web’s contribution to social, economic and political progress across 86 countries.
The report also revealed that:Web users are at increasing risk of indiscriminate government surveillance. Laws preventing bulk mass surveillance are weak or non-existent in over 84% of countries, up from 63% in 2013.
Online censorship is on the rise. Moderate or extensive Web censorship seen in 38% of countries over past year. (2013 = 32%), it added.
Online organising leads to offline change. Despite a sharp deterioration in the overall environment for press freedom in nearly every country studied, the Web and social media are making a major contribution to sparking citizen action in three in five of the countries studied.
Meanwhile, in over 60% of countries, women are using the Web to claim and exercise their rights to a moderate or extensive degree.
True net neutrality remains a rarity. A world-first assessment of net neutrality across countries found only around a quarter of nations effectively enforce clear rules against commercial or political discrimination in the management of Internet traffic.
Online Gender Based Violence is not being tackled effectively. In 74% of Web Index countries, including many high-income nations, law enforcement agencies and the courts are failing to take appropriate actions in situations where Web-enabled ICTs are used to commit acts of gender-based violence.
Almost 60% of the world’s people cannot get online, whilst half of all Web users live in countries that severely restrict their rights online.
Reflecting on the findings, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the Web and founder of the World Wide Web Foundation said:
“It’s time to recognise the Internet as a basic human right. That means guaranteeing affordable access for all, ensuring Internet packets are delivered without commercial or political discrimination, and protecting the privacy and freedom of Web users regardless of where they live.”
The Index calculation has been significantly revamped over the past year, making year on year country comparisons impossible. However, as in past years, Scandinavian nations once again topped the report’s country tables. States that have high levels of wealth, low levels of inequality, and strong protection for civil liberties — such as top-ranked Denmark, Finland and Norway — are gaining the most social and economic benefit from the Web.
“The richer and better educated people are, the more benefit they are gaining from the digital revolution. This trend can and must be reversed,” said Anne Jellema, CEO of the World Wide Web Foundation, and the lead author of the report. “Extreme disparities between rich and poor have been rightly identified as the defining challenge of our age, and we need to use technology to fight inequality, not increase it.”
“In an increasingly unequal world, the Web can be a great leveler — but only if we hardwire the rights to privacy, freedom of expression, affordable access and net neutrality into the rules of the game,” Berners-Lee said.
African Eye News.com
