ICT in Society, Cyber Ethics and Security
ICT in Society, Cyber Ethics and Security
This domain covers ICT applications and the responsible, secure use of digital systems. Expect questions on e-governance, e-learning, e-commerce, digital divide, cyber ethics, threats, safeguards and cyber law.
Core rules
- ICT applications include e-governance (online public services), e-learning, e-commerce, telemedicine, and digital banking.
- The digital divide is unequal access to ICT due to geography, cost, skills or infrastructure.
- Cyber ethics covers acceptable online behaviour: respect privacy, avoid plagiarism, do not harass, and seek permission before sharing data.
- Malware includes viruses (attach to files), worms (self-replicate across networks), Trojans (disguised as useful software) and ransomware (blocks data until payment).
- Safeguards: strong unique passwords, multi-factor authentication, updates, firewall, antivirus, encryption and backups. Cyber law provides legal remedies.
Worked example
An email says your account will be blocked in 24 hours; click this link and enter your password. The link shows a misspelled domain. This is phishing: urgency, a mismatched link and a request for credentials are classic signs. The reasoning is to verify the sender and domain independently, never log in through an unsolicited link, and report it. A firewall would not stop a user voluntarily typing a password into a fake site.
Traps
A firewall is not an antivirus. A virus needs a host file; a worm can spread by itself. Ethics is about right conduct; law is enforceable rules. Public Wi-Fi is not automatically secure. Deleting a file does not guarantee secure erasure. Sharing passwords violates basic security practice.