Industry Round-Up for the W/E 17th February 2012

It all seems to be about the Internet this week. Here is our weekly round-up of the industry news for the week ending February 17th:

• The Worldwide Struggle for Internet Freedom
• The internet is broken – we need to start over
• Alleged file-sharing websites disappear or change
• Mobile internet devices will outnumber people in 2016
• Rise in nomophobia: fear of being without a phone

The Worldwide Struggle for Internet Freedom

Reported on The Guardian, a study by Rebecca MacKinnon finds fundamental freedom of information under constant threat in our online age.

The author, Rebecca MacKinnon says:

“We have a responsibility to hold the abusers of digital power to account, along with their facilitators and collaborators. If we do not, when we wake up one morning to discover that our freedoms have eroded beyond recognition, we will have only ourselves to blame.”

The Internet is Broken – We Need to Start Over

Last year, the level and ferocity of cyber-attacks on the internet reached such a horrendous level that some are now thinking the unthinkable: to let the internet wither on the vine and start up a new more robust one instead.

Prof Alan Woodward, a cybersecurity expert at the University of Surrey, argues that Security flaws prove that the way the internet works needs a complete re-think.

Alleged File-Sharing Websites Disappear or Change

Three allegedly file-sharing websites have stopped or will soon stop giving access to copyright-infringing material in the aftermath of the closing of another site, according to police investigators.

The Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) said that it had

“monitored responses” to its takedown of the ‘RnBXclusive’ website on Tuesday and that other sites had gone offline or changed their purpose.

Read the complete article here.

Mobile Internet Devices will Outnumber People in 2016

Comment on the BCS website says that US-based networking firm Cisco believes mobile Internet  devices will number more than 7.3 billion – the predicted world population – in 4 years’ time, fuelling an 18-fold increase in mobile data traffic.

Rise in Nomophobia: Fear of Being Without a Phone

At a complete loss when you leave your phone at home?  Two-thirds of people suffer from ‘nomophobia’ – the fear of being without their phone – according to a new study reported on The Telgraph.

Researchers found 66 per cent of people are terrified of being without their phone, and the younger they are the more worried they are.