Internet

OpenAI rolls out ChatGPT plugins that let chatbot browse internet

The company said that it will start providing access to plugins with a small set of users and plan to gradually roll out larger-scale access as they learn more

Women, villages and the less affluent drive internet growth in rural India

The message from Nielsen's latest India Internet Report is that media planners need to get out of the reach game and get more creative to leverage the new type of audiences coming online

Inclusive internet must for bringing on board next 1 bn users: Experts

The next one billion Internet users are likely to come from countries that speak and write in languages other than English, putting in focus the need to develop a more inclusive and multilingual online space for individuals and organisations, experts said. Two global organisations The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and the Universal Acceptance Steering Group (UASG) have been working to make the Internet more unified that supports a broad range of languages and scripts, they said. The first major step of this objective is the Universal Acceptance of Internet (commonly referred to as UA'). It is a technical requirement that ensures all valid domain names and e-mail addresses can be used by all Internet-enabled applications, devices, and systems, UA Ambassador Sushanta Sinha told PTI. ICANN and UASG are observing the Universal Acceptance Day on March 28, seeking participation from the global Internet community. Nearly 50 UA Day events are expected to be

India now has 600 mn open Internet users, 62 mn more than walled gardens

Based on the research, half (52 per cent) of the 307 hours that the average consumer spends on digital media per month is on the open internet

Real heroes of web revolution

The tech creators, or the ones who made billions?

Let's talk about crime

If there's a spotlight focussed on crime -- or even on issues like poor public transport, or air pollution -- politicians feel impelled to do something about it

Rules for invasive gadgets likely under Digital India Act, says MoS IT

In the past, the government has cautioned social media platforms that they could lose safe harbours for not complying with Indian laws

8 of 10 urban Indian women use internet; harassment key concern: Survey

As many as 8 in 10 urban Indian women are now using internet for a range of activities, but many struggle with online harassment, abuse, trolling, and want action to be taken for making internet safer, according to a survey by LocalCircles. The survey revealed that 76 per cent of urban Indian women are using internet to stay in touch with family and friends, while 57 per cent are using it for finding information, and for entertainment. Nearly 83 per cent of those surveyed believe more actions need to be taken to make it safer for women to use the internet without being trolled, harassed, abused, facing extortion and fraud, LocalCircles release said detailing the findings of the survey. "Key concerns of urban Indian women when using the internet include online sexual harassment, trolling, abuse, extortion and fraud," the survey said. The survey received over 23,000 responses from citizens located in 301 urban districts of India, the release said, adding that 61 per cent respondents

Unable to connect

Internet shutdowns must be minimised

MoS IT launches Grievance Appellate Committee to ensure safe internet

"The move is to make sure that the internet remains open and safe for users in the country. These are early days for the committee and it will keep evolving as days progress," the minister said

India scores on innovation, internet use, modest on cybersecurity: Report

India fares well on parametres such as innovation and harnessing benefits of internet, but still has ground to cover when it comes to protection against cybercrime and invasion of privacy, according to a latest report. Without an exclusive cybersecurity law, Indians have to rely on "anachronistic" and sectoral regulations, making "protect" the weakest link in India's otherwise remarkable digital transformation, said the State of India's Digital Economy (SIDE) report. The report traces digital transformation thorugh four stages of connect, harness, innovate and protect framework. The report by ICRIER Prosus Centre for Internet and the Digital Economy (IPCIDE) gives a thumbs up to India's performance on "innovation" and harnessing the power of digital services. The 'harness' pillar measures how India is using the internet to generate growth, create jobs and improve governance. "Despite being a lower-middle income country compared to its G20 peers, India's performance is significantly

Cyber security breaches are up multiple times as Internet penetration grows

Data accessed by IANS said that cyber security incidents related to government institutions have increased significantly, particularly in 2022

Internet's most expensive domain gets just 88,800 monthly visitors

Call it bizarre but the most expensive domain ever on Web, that was bought for $30 million, receives only 88,800 visitors per month

Wikimedia Foundation urges Pakistan to restore access to Wikipedia

The Foundation received a notification from the PTA on February 1, 2023, stating "the services of Wikipedia have been degraded for 48 hours" for failure to remove content from site deemed "unlawful"

Wikipedia blocked in Pakistan on account of blasphemous content: Report

Pakistan has blocked Wikipedia after the website refused to remove offensive or blasphemous material, according to a media report on Saturday. The blacklisting of Wikipedia comes days after the Pakistan Telecom Authority (PTA) degraded Wikipedia services for 48 hours, threatening to block it if the content deemed blasphemous' was not deleted, The News newspaper reported. When a PTA spokesperson was contacted late on Friday night and inquired about the blocking of Wikipedia, the official confirmed that yes it had been blocked, it reported. On the instruction of the high court, the PTA degraded disrupting and slowing access to the encyclopedia website for 48 hours because there was blasphemous content on it. Wikipedia is a free online encyclopedia, created and edited by volunteers around the world and hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation. The PTA spokesperson stated that Wikipedia was approached for blocking/removal of the said content by issuing a notice. An opportunity for a hear

Need stringent law to curb unlawful Internet behaviour, cyber crime: NHRC

National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) chairperson Justice (Retd) Arun Kumar Mishra on Thursday called for a stringent law to deal with "unlawful Internet behaviour and cyber crimes." He was speaking after the inauguration of the 25th All India Forensic Science Conference at the National Forensic Sciences University in Gandhinagar. "It is necessary to promote cyber ethics. And there should be stringent legislation by the government to penalise and punish unlawful Internet behaviour and cyber crimes," the former Supreme Court judge said. Many countries have amended their laws "specifically to deal with cyber crimes along with the advent of newer kinds of crimes," he said. Freedom of expression applicable for "social media and cyber space" is not "larger" than what is granted to individuals or the media, Mishra said. "Freedom of expression under Article 19 of the Constitution given to the media or individuals is the same as that given to the social media or the cyberspace, it is .

The apps Indians love: All about mobile internet usage by age and gender

Gen Z , 25+ find no common ground in app consumption

Rising cost of data hinders rapid digitisation: MoS IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar

Rising prices of data and devices are a concern for the rapid proliferation of digitisation, Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar said on Wednesday. The comments have come against the backdrop of a recent hike of about 57 per cent in the minimum monthly recharge plan by the country's second-largest telco Bharti Airtel. "Rise in cost of data or cost of devices are of concern because they are impediments in rapid digitisation," Chandrasekhar said. The minister said that he is not exactly aware of the hike in mobile services rates by Airtel and the ministry may approach telecom regulator Trai to examine if the hike is going to have a short-term or long-term impact. He said that there has been an impact on prices across the world due to the Russia-Ukraine war and the impact of data price need to be examined. Bharti Airtel has increased the price of its minimum recharge for the 28-day mobile phone service plan by about 57 per cent to Rs 155 in eight circles, ..

ChatGPT's paid version available for $42 a month for some early users

However, another Twitter user posted that "I very much wanted to pay for a plan but 42$ is just too much"

State actors and information warfare

We should recognise that many can play the game of manipulation targeting the Indian information space