1.2 Cyberspace★

# A Word Borrowed from Science Fiction

• In 1982, a sci-fi writer invented a word for an imaginary computer world.
• He called it "cyberspace". It was pure fiction.
• Today you bank, study, shop and chat there every single day.
• So where exactly is this place, and what is it made of?

# Cyberspace PYQ 2M

Cyberspace is the virtual environment created by interconnected computers, networks, software, data and users, where people communicate, work and do business online.

Origin of the term

• Coined by William Gibson in his short story Burning Chrome (1982).
• Made popular by his novel Neuromancer (1984), which described it as a "consensual hallucination" shared by millions.

Components

1. Users: people, companies and governments.
2. Devices: computers, phones, servers, IoT devices.
3. Networks and infrastructure: cables, routers, mobile towers, satellites, data centres.
4. Data: everything stored and sent, from messages to bank records.
5. Services: websites, apps, email, cloud storage, UPI.

Layers of cyberspace

flowchart TD
    S["<b>Social layer</b><br>(people, online identities)"]:::green --> L["<b>Logical layer</b><br>(protocols, software, data)"]:::blue
    L --> P["<b>Physical layer</b><br>(hardware, cables, towers)"]:::amber
    classDef blue fill:#5b84d424,stroke:#5b84d480
    classDef amber fill:#d6a24424,stroke:#d6a24480
    classDef green fill:#52a86e24,stroke:#52a86e80

1. Physical layer: the hardware you can touch: computers, cables, routers, towers.
2. Logical layer: the rules and programs that make the hardware talk: protocols, software, data.
3. Social layer: the people and their online identities (email IDs, social-media profiles); one person may have many.

Characteristics

1. Borderless: data crosses countries in seconds, without passports.
2. Anonymous: users can hide behind fake names and accounts.
3. Virtual: it has no physical shape, though it runs on physical machines.
4. Always on: open 24 × 7.
5. Fast spread: a post or a virus can reach millions within hours.
6. Low cost of entry: a cheap phone and data pack are enough to join.

Cyberspace, internet and World Wide Web

Why cyberspace needs security and governance

• Borderless and anonymous, so crimes are easy to commit and hard to trace (→ 1.4).
• Most of life now depends on it: money, health, government services.
• Needs laws (IT Act 2000 → 5.2), response agencies (CERT-In) and safe user behaviour.

# Cyberspace, Cyber Ethics and Cyber Crime PYQ 5M · other

• Three linked ideas: cyberspace is the place, cyber ethics is the right way to behave there, and cyber crime is the illegal behaviour.

Cyber ethics

• Cyber ethics is the set of moral principles that guide responsible behaviour in cyberspace (→ 5.1).
• Examples: respecting others' privacy · not using pirated software · not spreading fake news · not hacking · giving credit for others' work.

Cyber crime

• Cyber crime is any crime in which a computer or network is the target, the tool, or both (→ 2.2).
• Examples: hacking, phishing, identity theft, cyberstalking, online fraud.

• Breaking cyber ethics is not always a crime (a rude comment), but every cyber crime is unethical.

Phases of planning a cybercrime

• Criminals plan an attack in stages: reconnaissance (gathering information), scanning and scrutinising (finding weak points), then launching the attack. In full → 2.7.