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PROBLEMS AND CHALLENGES OF THE INFORMATION
AGE
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By Sudeepa Nair
The Information age is believed to have begun roughly in the
1990's when widespread use of computers and information sharing

technologies like the Internet gave rise to anytime anywhere
accessibility to information. Some characteristics of the information age
include, use of information to achieve high productivity, global use of
information, emphasis on innovation rather than economies of scale and

high social, economic and political awareness. As opposed to the
industrial age, when laborious tasks were believed to yield returns, the
information age relies on the production and sharing of knowledge and

information to achieve profits.
As the world progresses through the information age, there are
some global challenges that might be faced.

1. Information security. This challenge is faced by everyone from
individuals and business firms to governments, security agencies and
defense forces. As information becomes easily accessible via the

Internet, channelizing and controlling the dissemination of information
becomes more and more difficult. Right from a ten-year old who
unwittingly leaves personal information in a chat room to security
agencies who rely on vast communication networks for quick

transmission of information, everyone is under the threat of information
theft and misuse. It ceases to be a mere technological issue when it
transcends national boundaries and enters into the realms of terrorism

and other international criminal activities.
2. Digital and Internet laws. Legal systems around the world are
at varying degrees of readiness when it comes to issues concerned with
the digital world. This includes copyright issues, Intellectual property

rights and so on. The Internet makes such issues international in nature,
so a global uniform digital law will become a necessity in future.
3. Social challenges. As businesses go global there will be a

pressing need to bridge the digital divide among nations and also within
national borders. Weaving in information technology into the
educational systems across the world poses a formidable challenge,

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Sudeepa N. Problems and Challenges of The Information Age / Nair Sudeepa. –
Available at: http://www.helium.com/items/1378379-challenges-in-the-information-age.