*The views expressed in the blog are those of the author.

A digital citizen refers to a person who has the knowledge and skills to effectively use digital technologies to communicate with others, participate in society and create and consume digital content.

There’s a major difference between good digital citizenship and bad digital citizenship.

Good digital citizenship engages the users and shows them how to connect with one another, empathize with each other, and create lasting relationships through digital tools.

Bad digital citizenship, on the other hand, entails cyber bullying, irresponsible social media usage, and a general lack of knowledge about how to safely use the Internet.

Digital citizenship encompasses digital literacy, ethics , etiquette, online safety ,norms, rights, culture and more.

Empathy is crucial to understand how people talk and behave online. In the worst scenario, this kind of behaviour can devolve into cyberbullying, which has been documented as an especially bad problem for young Internet users.

User data is one of the most complex and concerning concepts in the digital age. As a result, users need to know about personal data and they need to know how they can protect themselves!

A “digital footprint” is the mark that someone’s web browser leaves on the Internet. Whenever you go to any website, you’re tracked by some software that sees your “footprint.” Then, when you return, that same software matches up your previous footprint with your current website visit. The result is that websites know who you are, how many times you’ve visited their website, and what you’ve done while visiting. Some organizations like Facebook and Google may even track your Internet behaviour outside of their websites.

Digital literacy, another key concept , is the practice of reading information online and understanding what it means, where it originated, and whether it’s accurate . Digital literacy also includes learning about ethics, protecting yourself online, and even preventing cyberbullying.

Another key concept , understanding the digital divide is the disparity between those who have access to modern digital tools (like computers and the Internet) and those who don’t.

The most important key factor is digital wellness which is the practice of refraining from indulging in the Internet and digital media for unreasonable amounts of time. It is discovered that screen time can impact transactive memory, empathy, and even grey matter development in young minds.

The final element of becoming a good digital citizen is securing digital devices. We should know how they can secure their computers, smartphones, and more. This is crucial because data theft impacts  a larger part of people. 

By Ms. Malini Garg, TGT (Mathematics)

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