Andriy Links to an external site.SlynchukLinks to an external site. Links to an external site.has described eleven things Internet users do that may be illegal. Review what the author says and write a paragraph describing the five most serious violations and why you think those offenses are serious. 

To answer this question, I have compiled a list from 1-5 with 1 being the most serious. 

1. Collecting information about people younger than 13. 

2. Illegal searches on the internet. 

3. Sharing passwords, addresses, or photos of others.  

4. Faking your identity online. 

5. Bullying and trolling. 

In my opinion, collecting information about people younger than 13 is the most serious violation. I believe this ties into a much bigger issue that most adults do not fully understand the repercussions of sharing information on the internet, a child cannot possibly fathom the dangers they are putting themselves into by sharing personal information. Even the most innocent information shared can be used against the child to try groom the child into dangerous situations. Protecting children should be society’s first priority in everything including the internet.  

Illegal searches on the internet are second on my list for what I feel are obvious reasons. Searching for illegal content on the internet only encourages illegal behavior. While it is almost impossible to keep this information off the internet, we should be doing everything possible to limit access to such information. Obtaining this information can lead to dangerous physical instances.  

Sharing passwords, addresses and photos of others is third on the list. While sharing a photo on the internet may not seem like it should be illegal, everyone is entitled to their privacy and sharing the photo without permission is in direct violation of that. Furthermore, sharing personal information of others can potentially be dangerous. For example, if a survivor of domestic abuse is hiding from their ex-partner and someone else shares their current address, this can lead the abuser directly to the survivor and can lead to a very dangerous situation.  

Faking your identity online has become the modern way for identity theft. Using that information to deceive people or take advantage of their credentials is criminal. Using someone else’s identity can have devistating effects on the person whose identity is stolen. This offence is lower on the list simply because typically there is no physical damage done when this happens.  

Lastly, society’s views of bullying and trolling have changed drastically in my lifetime alone. While it used to be perceived as some sort of rite of passage, or tool to make the victims mentally stronger, it has more recently become viewed as a damaging form of human interaction. Bullying and trolling on the internet, while again has no physical damage (unless it is escalated to that point) the mental repercussions on the victims cannot be overlooked.