The Weaknesses of Modern Technology and High-Tech Solutions

Sophia Belnap

Life in the digital age has been full of surprises, most of them for the better. The technology on display in the modern era is truly staggering, and it has done much to solve age old problems and make luxury and recreation more accessible and affordable. However, using technology recklessly is always a recipe for disaster, so it’s important to understand both the benefits of technology and potential downsides. Here’s what you need to know.

Communications

Technology has a rich history of improving long distance communications, and the technology of today has continued that tradition with aplomb. People have more options than ever before for communicating with each other, from mobile phone calls and text messages to social media messengers, and even video calls. Even more impressive is that many of these methods allow for cross-platform communication. For example, person A can call person B on Facebook Messenger while person A is on a desktop computer and person B is on their phone. Teleconferencing via video calls has been instrumental in giving businesses the ability to emulate a traditional meeting between remote employees and on-site management, for example, and the same can be said for consumers using video calls to get together for holidays without the high costs of traveling across the country or even internationally.

The incredible flexibility of these communications innovations can be a complex affair leading to a variety of cybersecurity concerns, however, necessitating a session border controller that can keep everything organized and, more importantly, safe from bad actors. Simply put, most of the communications conveniences of the digital age come with a hidden downside, because each additional platform requires its own cybersecurity protections, and the interactions between multiple platforms create a major logistical problem. However, the experts are always working to refine and innovate while also countering known strategies and tools used by hackers.

E-commerce

The mention of mobile phones may have given you pause, because smartphones are their own can of worms as far as modern marvels go. They are of course integral to the increasingly connected world, but not only from a social perspective. E-commerce leverages not only websites, but also smartphone apps to make retail services, among others, available to users 24/7 from wherever they happen to be at the time. This is helpful for ordering essential products from Amazon or making an appointment with your local clinic, among many other use cases. 

However, every website of any kind requires certain cybersecurity protections, and e-commerce sites are specifically targeted by hackers. This is because hackers can theoretically obtain the personal information of users, not to mention credit card numbers, potentially allowing them to steal the identities of users. However, the bulk of this threat can be nullified by basic encryption services, and most businesses and other popular sites on the web have purchased these vital features to protect themselves and their users. Those that haven’t will have a harder time finding an audience, because Google deprioritizes unsecure websites in their search results to protect users from potential dangers like malware.

E-commerce apps are becoming the new normal for engaging with e-commerce services, however. Having access to your favorite products and brands on the go is an essential part of modern commerce as e-commerce sales from smartphone apps are accounting for a greater percentage of total sales year after year. The fact that seemingly every business has a proprietary app is made possible by APIs that help businesses throw their hat into the ring without spending a lot of time and money on it, but any flaws in the API itself will be present in the apps developed using them. For that reason, API security measures are increasingly necessary to prevent hackers from pinpointing those weaknesses to use against businesses and their customers in what is called a “zero day attack.”

While there are secret downsides to many of today’s most important technologies, there are ample highly trained experts working to minimize the risks associated with today’s increasingly online lifestyle. Being aware of the risks is important, but it’s also important not to worry too much, because the good guys win more often than not.