Modern Society and Facebook: Balancing Influence and Risk
Modern Society and Facebook: Balancing Influence and Risk
Tanjil Ahmed
01, July, 2024
In today's digital age, Facebook stands out as a premier platform for networking, entertainment, and online business, profoundly impacting individuals, society, nations, and the world at large. Before Facebook's inception on February 4, 2004, global users primarily engaged with social media platforms like GeoCities (1994) and Globe.com (1995). Mark Elliot Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, could not have foreseen its monumental success.
Despite the presence of numerous social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter, Facebook remains the most popular, with over 2.9 billion users worldwide. In comparison, Instagram has about 1.21 billion users, Twitter has 368 million, and LinkedIn has around 1 billion users (Statista, 2024). These figures clearly illustrate the increasing popularity of social media.
People widely use Facebook for business, communication, and entertainment because it's easy and cost-free to create an account. The platform's ability to connect individuals quickly and efficiently is one of its major benefits. In the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Facebook offers a versatile platform for entertainment, attracting a global audience with diverse content.
For businesses, Facebook is an essential tool for facilitating marketing, customer engagement, and e-commerce. Additionally, users leverage the platform to support causes, raise awareness about social issues, and drive community initiatives, contributing positively to social welfare. Facebook's interconnectivity enhances individuals' abilities to maintain connections across geographical and cultural boundaries.
However, a significant portion of the population remains unaware of the proper use of Facebook, particularly concerning moral and ethical considerations. Many users also lack understanding of cybersecurity, information hacking, cyberbullying, and related crimes, leading to detrimental effects on their social lives.
Despite Facebook's occasional role as a watchdog, users often do not verify information before sharing it, leading to the persistent spread of rumors within society, nations, and globally. This raises the question of accountability for such misinformation on Facebook, pointing to the users themselves.
Currently, about 55.6 million people in Bangladesh use Facebook, representing 30.89% of the nation's population (Statista, 2024). A significant portion of these users are from the younger generation. While the use of the Internet, Facebook, and other IT tools highlights the country's digitalization progress, there is a pressing question of whether we adhere to ethical standards, norms, and values in leveraging these technologies.
According to Action Aid Bangladesh, at some point, around 64% of women have faced online harassment and violence on Facebook. The widespread dissemination of rumors via Facebook poses a serious threat to Bangladesh. A survey by the Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) cyber section identified approximately 2,500 Facebook pages involved in disseminating questionable content and inciting communal hatred.
Notably, Facebook posts have triggered violent incidents in Bangladesh in recent years, such as the Ramu and Nasirnagar incidents. Similar acts of violence, fueled by provocative posts, occur daily across the country. Misleading or inflammatory content often drives these events, inciting community conflict. Additionally, the inability to effectively track and identify fake Facebook users has led to widespread fraudulent activities.
Social media laws mandate the investigation and action of any complaint. However, in many cases, social media platforms fail to investigate and address registered complaints. Therefore, the government should regulate social media platforms more effectively to prevent the spread of rumors.
The Digital Security Act (2018), aimed at controlling online content, preventing rumors, and combating cybercrimes, false news, and hate speech, has faced criticism for its vague provisions. The lack of accountability and transparency in the act's implementation presents further challenges.
To counteract these issues, it is crucial to increase user awareness regarding information sharing on Facebook. The government should incorporate IT education into primary schooling to raise awareness among young people about the potential dangers of social media platforms.
Additionally, to address these concerns and prevent the spread of rumors, the government should promote cybersecurity education, improve systems for identifying fake Facebook users, impose strict penalties for creating and using fake accounts, establish safe reporting mechanisms for victims, and encourage ethical behavior among social media users.
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