I think we can all agree that the technology we have now has been immensely helpful in making our lives easier. Most wouldn't have it any other way or wouldn't survive with the devices they have gotten used to, With that said, there are still setbacks that are pretty hard to ignore.
1. The Spread of Fake News
Thanks to social media and other websites, we can access important news with a few taps. All you need is an internet connection and you can view news from seven years ago with no problem. However, having an easy way to publish data also serves as a downside.
Anyone can post any form of information on the internet, and sadly, there are those who provide false information. Some are not intentional while others do it for the sake of clicks. This has been a growing problem especially in social media sites despite fact-checking systems.
2. Over-Reliance on Technology
With services and devices that can do almost anything for us, we are becoming more over-reliant with modern technology than we should. We sometimes don't bother to learn the necessary knowledge and skills since we can just search for them on the internet anyway.
As we depend on technology, our thinking capacity is reduced since programs do our thinking for us. Even physical activity is impacted by all the convenient apps where we can pay someone else to do things for us. Instead of the minimal exercise we get from chores, we now have automated devices for them.
3. Replacing Humans Jobs
Over the years, more machines have been invented that eliminate the need for human workers. Factories now prefer robots over people to get rid of the human error factor, as well as the payment that it requires.
With the emergence of AI, more jobs are threatened of being taken over. There are already cases where companies replaced their employees with ChatGPT. Generative AI is fascinatingly capable of writing code, greetings artworks, and more. Sadly, this will continue to happen with no way to stop it.
4. Lack of Privacy
With social media networks and the internet in general, a lot of information is out in the open, even ones that people would prefer to stay private. Someone who is skilled enough can dig up data about you such as your full name, address, phone number, credit card, and more.
With this information accessed, you are vulnerable to fraudulent activities like phishing scams or even ransomware attacks. A lot of people can easily be tracked through their online activities, which can even expose them to real-world harm.
5. Abused Anonymity
Through the internet, you can completely recreate yourself. By creating an account that you cannot be associated with, you can browse through the internet without having your identity exposed for security reasons. Unfortunately, people tend to abuse and misuse this perk.
Since they are behind the veil of anonymity, people are under the impression that they can say anything they want since they won't really suffer real-life consequences. This has brought out the ugly side of many users, making for an unpleasant experience on the internet in some cases.
