Is it All Gold that Glitters? The “New Normal”

Abstract

Within the general framework of “Internet for social good” the paper offers an insight into the potential impacts and drawbacks in lieu of the ongoing digital transformation. It analyses some of the key facts and events that characterised the recent past and contributed to identifying the digital transition as the natural evolution of our society. It looks at cyber technology from the humanities side, considering the mid- and long-term impact on society. Our “world” is being reshaped by cyber technology, government procedures, production and supply chains, general services and more as they all are based on cyber technology and platforms. Platforms are mainly private, and the key ones are concentrated in a few countries creating a kind of oligarchy. The “control buttons” of our daily lives are often outside the control of our nation-state. Many a time, the double nature of “cyber”, though contributes to improving resilience, because of its pervasive nature, it can be the target for attacks. In the “analog” world we had different “channels” to perform our activities. In the cyber world the whole “system” depends on cyber technology. This represents a significant risk, both in case of malfunction or hackers’ attack and, in case of a top-down decision, to switch off. A plan B in such a situation will require a long time to be implemented. Social media and global content providers are “training” young generations by offering a “unified global” approach. This will impact future generations and their cultural identity. The recent pandemic boosted the digital transition. An increasing number of “digitally divided” citizens are forced to “go digital”. This generated a significant impact on cybersecurity. We are surrounded by “critical infrastructures” managed by cyber components that, in case of attacks, may create major or minor impacts on our daily lives. On the social side, we are wrapped in our cyber-sphere in a kind of symbiotic relationship. Citizens experience the world, thanks to a cyber device-mediated approach. The “new reality” is the one delivered by devices. The cyber-loneliness, one of the foreseeable risks is a kind of addiction to this “parallel life” training users to shift from Real- to Meta-life blurring the border between them. The “new normal”, is this what we aim for?