Digital Citizen

Lecturer: Ernest Skinner

Consulting Hours: Thursday 14h00 – 15h00 (via
whatsapp (0826582737) Block 2
Email Address: ernest.skinner@wits.ac.za Week 4

Information Systems 1A / Fundamentals of Information Systems

 How does the internet work?

Protecting yourself Online

Topics for Understanding Open Data Formats

Lecture
IS for Personal Productivity

Going Paperless

Using Digital Signatures

 How the internet works

• Take a moment to think about how amazing the

Internet is:
– It’s always on
– It is “free”
– It’s (almost) never noticeably congested (though
individual sites or access points might be)
– you can get messages to anywhere in the world
instantaneously
– you can communicate for free, including voice
and video conferencing
– you can stream music and movies
– it is uncensored (in most places) (of course, this
can be viewed as good or bad)
• When we talk about the Internet, what we’re
actually referring to is
an interconnected network of computers
(hence, internet). Some of these computers
are web servers, which are just specialised
computers that contain and serve content from
your favourite websites, and others are just
the client devices we use everyday, like our
laptops, tablets, and mobile phones.
• For now, let’s ignore our own internet connected devices and focus
on those web servers. Let’s imagine each of these web servers as a
tall building and that they’re connected to each other via highways
and roads. This network of highways and roads (which is made up of
fiberoptic cables around the world) can be thought of as the
Internet, and what travels along these highways and roads is data.
Just like how physical buildings in real life have a mailing address,
each of our web servers (which represents our favourite web sites
like Facebook.com) have a unique address called an ip address.
• Now you might ask, “What about us? How do we connect to the
internet?” That’s where our Internet Service Providers (ISP’s) come
into play. You can imagine them as special buildings that allow our
client devices to connect to the highways and roads. Continuing
with our analogy, just think of each of our internet connected
devices as a house with a driveway that leads to the ISP’s. And once
your house is hooked up to the internet, you’re good to go!
 Your browser is what we call a “client
application” and what this simply means
is that its a program that allows you to
Now that we have a (very) high level
make requests to different web sites and
sense of what the internet is, how exactly
respond to the data that those web sites
does it work? This is where your browser
send back. To best explain how this
comes into play.
works, I’ll list out some of the steps
involved with making a request to
wits.ac.za:

When you type in

“http://www.wits.ac.za” into your
browser, your browser somehow needs
From our discussion above, remember
to know that this URL (i.e. uniform
how I said that each web server has its
resource locator) actually means the ip
own unique ip address? Well, the web
address 146.141.13.50. So what the
server for Wits has its own ip address,
browser does is that it contacts the DNS
which I found out is 146.141.13.50.
(domain name service) and looks up the
ip address for that url. You can think of
the DNS as a phone book
• Once the ip address is retrieved, your browser attempts to connect to the web
server by opening up a socket connection. Without getting into the details,
think of this as you physically calling the tall building (i.e. web server) and
seeing if they’re still open. If someone responds, then you know they’re open
and you’re connected.
• Now that your browser and the server have an open connection with each
other, your request to a specific article on Wits can be made. But before your
request can be sent over the internet, it has to follow a set of rules that
describe how the request must be formatted. These set of rules are known
as TCP/IP and the HTTP protocol.
• Essentially, think of it like this: in order to travel along the highways and roads
of the internet, every request made by your browser and every response sent
by a web server must first be chopped up into small packets of data. You can
think of your original request as a photo mosaic, and once its been chopped
up, each tile represents a packet of data. Aside from containing the binary bits
of data, each tile also knows the ip address its supposed to go to and how to
reassemble itself once all the packets reach the destination ip address.
• Going back to our example of requesting a specific article on
Wits, the request for the article is chopped up into packets and
sent along the highway and roads. Along the way, there
are routers (and other similar devices) that basically act as
traffic cops and direct the packets to the correct path leading to
the ip address.
• Once all the packets of data arrive at the web server, the web
server will look for the specific article, similar to how you’d look
for a file in a cabinet drawer. Once the file has been located, the
web server will chop up the response into data packets again,
and send them back to your browser.
• Finally, when all the data packets arrive back at your browser,
your browser will reassemble all packets into the HTML, CSS,
JavaScript, and image files that represent the article. And once
these files are processed, you’ll magically see the article
displayed on screen
Protecting
Yourself
Online
 Why Become Tech-Savvy?

• People rely heavily on technology for both

academic and non-academic purposes
Laptops Netbooks MP3 Players
Smart Phones
Tablets E-Readers

• Near-constant access to technology

• Need to accomplish many tasks online

• Skills are more than just how to use it; need to be

truly savvy about technology
Why do you use technology?
 Technology is so well-integrated
into daily life that we may not
realize its extent

A Double- Pros: convenience and efficiency

Cons: dependence and

Edged vulnerability

Sword Technology’s benefits usually

outweigh its risks

However, serious problems can

arise if you’re not safe and savvy
when using technology
Types of Technology-
Related Risks

• Security Issues

• Safety Issues

• Privacy Issues

• Data Integrity Issues

If You Post
Anyone can find a lot of
information about you online.

The motivation and

It, They All it takes to find many

persistence to look for them

Will Find It
details about you is…

A small amount of prior

knowledge about you
If you are careless about
online safety and security,
they may also be able to
access more sensitive or
private information about you
 What Can I Find Out About YOU?
• Where you go to school
• What kind of car you
drive
• What you did last
Saturday night
• Your favorite songs
• Where you work
• What you want for your
birthday
• Where you live
• The brand of pizza you
prefer
• The people you admire
• Where & when you’re
going on vacation
• What you’re looking for in
a significant other
• Who your friends are
• Where to find you on • Who your family
Tuesday evenings members are
• Illegal activities you’ve • Your favorite movies
participated in
• Your birthday and age
• Who your roommates are • What causes/issues you
and whether you get
support
along
• Where you shop
• Your opinion of your
teachers • How you’re doing in
school
• Your political views
• Which websites, books,
• Your sense of humour and magazines you read
• Where you are and what • What you look like
you’re doing right now
• And much more…
• What you think of your
boss
• Items you own and items
you want to purchase
• Your favorite sports teams
• Your sexual orientation
 Where Can I Find All This
Information?
• Social networking sites
Facebook, Twitter, Google+
• Blogs
Blogger, Tumblr
• Personal websites
• Photo/video sites
YouTube, Instagram
• Dating sites
eHarmony, Match.com
• Online video games
Xbox Live, Steam
• Message boards
Any website with this feature
• Wish lists/registries
Amazon, Target, eBay
• File-sharing sites
BitTorrent
• Entertainment sites/services
Hulu, Netflix, Goodreads
• Employment-related sites
Monster, CareerBuilder
• Business sites
Craigslist, Etsy, Roommates
• Other
Can you think of additional
online
resources where you may
inadvertently
be sharing more than you
realize?
 Disciplinary action from universities

Stalking
Potential
Consequences Use of posted information as incriminating
evidence in legal matters
of
Irresponsible
Identity theft
Technology
Use Being passed over for a new job or
internship

Disciplinary action from an employer,

including getting fired
 How can you deal with
the risks inherent in
using technology?

You can’t ignore the risks,

but you also can’t avoid
technology entirely.

The solution is to become

“web wise”
and technologically-savvy.
 From “Street Smart”
to “Web Wise”

• “Street smart” people…

– Possess strong
common sense
– Have good instincts
– Develop strong critical
thinking skills
– Are aware of their
environment, including
the risks it may pose
– Use their skills to make
good decisions and
minimize risks

• “Web wise” is the internet

version of “street smart”
 Understand that being tech-savvy is
about more than knowing how to use
technology

Becoming Learn about technology-related risks

“Web
Wise” and Take steps to avoid or minimize risks

Tech- Take responsibility for your role as a

Savvy member of the online community by

being a good cyber-citizen

Apply critical thinking skills and good

judgment to all your technology-
related actions
 Tips for Becoming a
“Web Wise” & Tech-Savvy Student
 Keep a Clean
Machine
• Use reputable security software and
ensure that it scans for threats
regularly
– Anti-virus
– Anti-malware
– Anti-spyware

• Don’t bypass or disable security

protocols

• Keep security software up-to-date

• Protect all devices that connect to the

internet

• Don’t forget about external devices

like flash drives
 Connect with
Caution
• Access Wi-Fi hotspots wisely
– Pay attention to the networks
you connect to
– Set tighter privacy controls
for public networks
– Don’t conduct sensitive
business on public Wi-Fi

• Make sure you’re using secure

sites for all financial transactions

• Protect your accounts with strong

passwords and additional identity-
verification measures
 Create Strong Passwords

• Minimum length of 8 characters

• Include at least 3 different types of characters:

Uppercase letters (A B C) Lowercase letters (a
b c) Numbers (1 2 3) Symbols (@ & % * ?
/ + ~)

• NO personal information
e.g., pet’s name, significant dates, favorite teams, etc.

• NO dictionary words or names

• NO reverse-spelled words or common substitutions

e.g., regrubeseehc, LuvDaPir@tez1, 3L!z@b3t4
 • password • dragon • master • michael
• 123456 • 111111 • 123123 • ninja
• 12345678 • baseball • welcome • !@#$%^
• abc123 • iloveyou • shadow &*
• password
Don’t Even •
•
qwerty
monkey
•
•
trustno1
1234567
•
•
ashley
football
1

Think About • letmein • sunshine • donald

Using These • These are the 25 “Worst Passwords of 2020”

Passwords…
 More Password Tips

• Change passwords regularly

• Use a different password for each account

• Store passwords securely

– Write it down and lock it up
– Use a password manager

• Do not share your password with anyone

• Choose security questions and answers wisely

Take Common-Sense
Precautions

• Check and customize your security and

privacy settings

• Never leave your technology

unattended

• Always remember to log out of

accounts on shared or public
computers

• Don’t open, download, or click on

anything that looks even remotely
suspicious

• Back up your data often and store it

securely
 Consider limiting others’
access to your social
networking profiles

Share Don’t rely solely on privacy

Safely on settings to protect your
information

Social
Make decisions about what
Media to share (and what not to
share) with a level head

Learn to evaluate your

social media presence with
a critical eye
 Good citizenship

Be a Good • Becoming well-informed and educated

• Respecting legitimate authority
Cyber- • Being involved and engaged to promote
the welfare of the community and

Citizen people within it

• Treating your environment, yourself,
and others with respect and helping
those who need support as you are able

Good citizenship also applies to

the global community as
accessed through the internet
 Understand your potential to impact
others through your online actions

Good Respect laws and rules in cyberspace

as you would in everyday life,
Cyber- including intellectual property rights

Citizenship Treat others in the online community

with respect

• If you wouldn’t say or do it in person, don’t say

or do it online
• The “Golden Rule” of social networking: Post
about others only as they would post about
themselves
• Consider your motives for posting about others
The Bottom • THINK…!
• …before you post
•
•
Ask yourself:
What are the risks?
Line for • …before you act • Why am I doing this?
Using • Would I want
________ to see this?
Technology • Do these
actions/words portray
Responsibly me as I want to be
perceived by others?
 All open data is publicly available.
But not all publicly available data is
open

Understanding
Open Data
Formats

open data means that whatever

data is released is done so in a
specific way to allow the public to
access it without having to pay fees
or be unfairly restricted in its use.
• These are in very approximate order — many of the steps can be done
simultaneously.
• Choose your dataset(s). Choose the dataset(s) you plan to make open. Keep in
mind that you can (and may need to) return to this step if you encounter
problems at a later stage.

• Apply an open license.

– Determine what intellectual property rights exist in the data.
– Apply a suitable ‘open’ license that licenses all of these rights and
supports the definition of openness.
– NB: if you can’t do this go back to step 1 and try a different dataset.

• Make the data available — in bulk and in a useful format. You may also wish
to consider alternative ways of making it available such as via an API.

• Make it discoverable — post on the web and perhaps organize a central

catalog to list your open datasets.
 IS for Personal Productivity

• If you find yourself:

• Forgetting important information or missing
meetings and deadlines
• Spending a lot of time searching through lists or
emails to find information or identify tasks
• Struggling to complete work at the same pace as
coworkers or competitors
• Causing tension or frustration as team members
have to wait for you or remind you to respond
or contribute
• Feeling overwhelmed with your workload and
the number of distractions you deal with
 Getting Things Done (GTD)

• GTD is followed by millions of people who have found

that it creates mental clarity and enables them to
focus on achieving their goals. It’s the personal
productivity method of many industry leaders and
experts.
• The core principles of GTD involve:
• Breaking large projects and goals down into small,
specific incremental tasks
• Capturing all tasks into a single system, excluding
vague tasks or inactionable items
• Doing fast, simple, easy tasks immediately
• Prioritizing larger tasks and working on them one at a
time
 Inbox Zero

Inbox Zero is a The core system of Don’t leave your Eliminate as many Forward emails that
personal productivity Inbox Zero email client open. new items as can be delegated
method specifically Silence notifications possible by deleting
designed to organize and only interact or archiving them
and manage email. with email at
People who handle scheduled times
large volumes of
email swear by
Merlin Mann’s
system of managing
email
communications.

Respond Messages that Set aside a scheduled

immediately to require more lengthy time every day to
emails that can be responses get moved review and answer
answered in two to a “requires the “requires
minutes or less response” folder response” emails
until that folder is
empty
 Going Paperless
Use digital versions
Always scan
of your usual
everything
paper products

Schedule regular
Open all your mail
self-audits and
at the postbox
paper-purges

Always ask for

digital versions
 Digital Signatures

• is an electronic signature that can be used to

authenticate the identity of the sender of a
message or the signer of a document, and
possibly to ensure that the original content of
the message or document that has been sent is
unchanged. Digital signatures are easily
transportable, cannot be imitated by someone
else, and can be automatically time-stamped.
The ability to ensure that the original signed
message arrived means that the sender cannot
easily repudiate it later.
How it works
• The use of digital signatures usually involves two processes, one
performed by the signer and the other by the receiver of the
digital signature:
• Digital signature creation uses a hash result derived from and
unique to both the signed message and a given private key. For
the hash result to be secure, there must be only a negligible
possibility that the same digital signature could be created by
the combination of any other message or private key.
• Digital signature verification is the process of checking the
digital signature by reference to the original message and a
given public key, thereby determining whether the digital
signature was created for that same message using the private
key that corresponds to the referenced public key.