Chapter 1 Communication in Cyberspace Era

Change is a sure thing to happen as well as unavoidable. Any change is a consequence of the
advancing technology, primarily in terms of information and communication. The birth of internet
avers that this world has no boundaries, neither geographical nor territorial.
Internet provides an equal access for everyone, that it builds a new form of community which
cherishes free, limitless communication and more democratic values. Even a research indicated that
internet has changed societys culture toward more open!minded, optimistic, tolerant, and radical
attitude in the face of change.
Compared with the old days time when there were taboos that people avoid uttering them publicly,
such as se"uality, todays individuals are free to e"press those sub#ects without being bridled by
norm constraints and conventional values.
In addition, online media has provided a chance for every individual to represent himself to other
people. The recent birth of online media such as Facebook, Twitter, blogs, as well as $in%edIn has
provided a wide space for every individual or user to represent himself, while building awareness of
his e"istence.
There are many ways to maintain such cyber e"istence. &ust to name a few, someone might post
words of wisdom on Facebook status update or on the tweets. 'ome other might blatantly critici(e,
share personal matters, update recent activity and report latest position.
)ot only through wording, online self!actuali(ation may ta%e form in shared video or photos. *e
may frequently find +aceboo% status update showing photos of a user during a visit to certain
places, photos of him with famous public figures, or photos that he captured himself.
In other words, social media has turned into a means of e"pressing ones identity or self!image, in
order to impress other people. This boo% will help us to understand better peoples profile or
characters according to their internet behaviour, especially on social media.
Can we understand these characters through their internet behaviour,
There are many factors that attract someone to us- and among them are physical and psychological
factors. Commonly, the first impression that attracts someone is rather physical- however,
psychological factor will attract more as time goes. .sychological factors will be the lifetime!
determining factor.
/nderstanding people in real world is not a difficult thing to do when it involves physical
interaction and ma%ing friends. 'o, the question is0 will we be able to understand the characters of
someone whom we %now through social media, It is worth ta%ing note that we should only #udge
someone as a good or bad person after ma%ing frequent interaction with intense communication.
As time goes by, cyberspace !especially social media! establishes communication between
individuals or communities, possibly without involving physical encounters. 'uch social networ%
features have helped individuals to interact with each other.
+or instance, features such as e!mail, +aceboo% and Twitter have bridged one!to!one
communication, while mailing list accommodates one!to!many purpose and easily enables
individuals to discuss and share opinion with a community.
Cyberspace features that provide easy communication have made interaction become more intense
between cyberspace users, or mainly social networ%s users. They are engaged in an outright chat
over personal matters. /nsurprisingly, it is a common thing to see that people post a status update
about their personal life, activities and geo!tagging their current location, and even e"press blunt
criticism.
In addition to wordings, communication can also be made through videos, images or photos.
1arious e"pressions made by social media users are indirect character reveal.
Therefore, understanding peoples characters by observing their cyberspace activities is not an
impossible thing to do. Everything is now on our hands. *ill we critici(e this e"pression of
e"istence made by social media users !who might be one of our friends, or leave it as it is.
Identifying .ersonality from .hoto 'hoot .oses
)ot only a social networ% platform shows account users name, but also an attractive photo profile.
'ocial media profile picture, be it +aceboo% or Twitter, will tell us users character.
1. 'e"y loo%
Those who post rather vulgar, se"y profile pictures on cyberspace are ones who have nerve to ta%e
even the worst ris% that may occur. They are a %ind of people who wont be bothered by harsh
criticism. They have a high self!confidence as well.
2n the other hand, they will insist on their own beliefs, ma%ing them hard to accept other
peoples opinions. In addition, this %ind of users tends to be an"ious about their love relationship.
A se"y profile picture on social media accounts reflects an intention to be a cynosure for all
users eyes, a desire to be a star amongst the networ% of friends by showing off, while at the same
time, covering the wea%nesses beyond. This %ind of users often seems childish, especially regarding
their romance life.
3. The e"pressive duc% face selfie
4y giving the appearance of pouty lips, as if its going to %iss, duc% face pose reflects a
searching for intimacy or even a date. The %issing!loo%s lips imply sensuality. Those who love
posing in such way tend to cherish anything involving physical contact, such as gentle caress,
holding hands and the li%e.
5. $ow %ey photo
Those who love posting under!e"posure photo or photos under low light source might be
unpredictable and have complicated personality. They often fail to understand what they really want
in life. Their life is #ust as mysterious as their dar% photographs. They may appear to be %ind
sometimes, yet no one %nows their hidden intention.
6. Constantly changing profile pictures and using someone elses photo
Those who constantly change profile picture on social media, tend to feel insecure, less confident,
and ma%e a rec%less decision. They are sceptical and mistrustful.
4esides, some people of this %ind might have multiple personalities and will never get contented
with the decision they made. They sometimes also encounter identity crisis and curious about
peoples perception toward them.
7. .osting celebrity picture
*hen someone prefer posting celebrity picture rather than using his photo, there is an indication
that he idoli(es someone else as he consider his life is lat lower level of success. This type of users
seems to have low self!confidence and frequently as% for other peoples opinion about them. They
are a %ind of introverted personality and will reluctantly discuss about their personal life.
They live in a small world, interact with a very limited number people and live a monotonous daily
life. They love to curb their desires and dreams. /ploading someone elses picture as a profile
picture is a way to mirror their personality. They are utopian and love to life in their own fantasy
world.
8. .osing *ith .ets
'omeone of this type are usually compassionate and a family guy who wishes to ta%e care of and
protect his family. .osing with pet may also indicate that someone has a family oriented attitude.
9. .osing *hile :oing an Activity
A user who posts a picture of him while doing certain activity such as doing physical e"ercise,
wor%ing, reading a boo% or gardening. This is an indication that he wants to be recogni(ed for
certain ability and e"periences in life. )ormally, he will rarely tal% about his romance life or any
sub#ect related to his emotional state. This also implies reluctance to be committed to a relationship
bound.
/nderstanding Character through 'tatus /pdate
'tatus update is the most favoured feature of social networ%. Every sentence that you tweet or post
on +aceboo% indicates your preference for certain topic.
4oth +aceboo% and Twitter might be places to wrea% your pique over something, instead of letting
anger e"plode within yourself. Every tweet or faceboo% post reflects your true personality. Then we
may figure out that someone is smart, has a critical awareness, sociable and creative based on his
language style when posting an update.
2n the other hand, we may also consider someone as irritable, pompous, and dull or sloven by
reading his status update. They are what we figure out in our mind. ;ou will be recogni(ed as a
whiner if you often whine on your +aceboo% status update.
This also applies to other social media, e.g. blog. If you are a <om who loves to write about your
lovely %ids, then you introduce yourself as a mother who cares about her family. If you tal% much
about financial sub#ects, then you will be considered as a financial e"pert.
'ome status posts are sighs, yelping about traffic #am, the hot weather, the hungry belly,
sic%ness, or other e"pression of suspicion. =>ot trapped in traffic #am=, ='uffering from
stomach ache=, =+eeling unwell=, ='he has changed=, and so on. $oo% at those posts, and you
will find out that there are people whose status update is full of sigh.
)ot even a day when youll find 44< personal message feeds show e"pression of
gratefulness- over and again, we will only see people moan as if their life is full of anguish. Ta%e
a close loo% at them for the whole day and youll soon understand someones character, since he
would post and update for anything that he feels. 'igh over sigh will flood your timeline each
single hour, moreover when someone accuses that his?her lover cheat with another guy?girl- such
a status that brings e"citement for the day. 'omeone of this %ind will be called as the whiner The
following is some %ind of status update that user may post on social media0
Showing Off and Pompous
;ou may have followed a status update that pompously shows off, such as when someone
got a high score for an e"am, goes on a vacation abroad, proudly poses in front of a 4<*
car for a profile picture, or shows off an e"pensive bicycle which costs tens of millions and
so on.
Inspiring and Motivating Status Update
@owever, there are people who post a status update e"pressing gratitude or motivating
words. These %ind of motivating words will ma%e other social media users who read list of
posts on recent updates section or reading updated status on social networ% be inspired to do
so.
Eccentric of Unique Status Update
There are also eccentric or unique status updates, or even the poetic, romantic sentences for a
status update. They use sentence which will ma%e the reader smile orlaugh out. Those who
post such sentences usually have a good sense of humour and quite friendly for you to
ma%e friend with.
Never Updating Status. Ever.
'ome social media users even rarely change their profile picture and wont post a status
update for quite a long time. There are two possibilities that may e"plain what %ind of
people they are- the first is that they might be very busy and mysterious users who want
to %eep their profiles un%nown. *hile, the second possibility is that they might be
fugitives A$.2.$B or shy users.
To sum up, you should ta%e a serious consideration before updating your social media
status, as you will be #udged as an immature person for your frequent sighing status updates,
sceptical and lac% of
C
gratefulness- or quite the opposite, they will consider you a wise
person for motivating and inspiring other people to develop and improve their life, or simply
bring smile on their face through your social media posts.
4asically, everyone wants to be considered as a good person by his friends. @owever, it is important
to ta%e note that good impression is a result of good deeds and mannerly behaviour. ;our tweet or
status update should bring positive contents and values.
*hen you want to be a social media e"pert, you need to write and share more about social media.
*hen you want to be the most up!to!date fashionista, write about latest fashion review for your
posts. ;our personal brand is what you write.
*e have witnessed many instances of social media status update that leads to undesirable troubles.
Crime and se"ual harassment often stem from social media.
The offender may commit a crime after reading an updated status. $ets ta%e a loo% at the following
=Just get back from school, get exhausted. Mom's still out. Dad's still at his office. et's open
Facebook!=. This status post implies that the user is alone at home. This is a perfect time for the
offender to carry out the action.
Therefore, dont show your na%ed identity online. This means that you should avoid e"pose every
detail of your personal identity, your current condition and your daily routine. They will easily stal%
on you and try to harm you.
*hy Is It Important to /nderstand .eoples Characters on Cyberspace,
.ersonality lies within you. .ersonality will dynamically develop- this means that personality will
grow mature as long as someone broaden his %nowledge and has a willingness to learn, loo% for
new e"periences and new s%ills.
It is important to understand peoples characters on cyberspace. There are some ethical codes to
follow on the cyberspace, regardless the fact that these rules and cultures are not formally written.
*hen someone fails to comply with these codes regarding other users character on cyberspace,
especially +aceboo% and Twitter, misunderstanding may occur, and either does crime.
;ou may have been informed that recently, rapes are rife committed by a guy who creates a fa%e
social media account to get in touch with the victims. This fa%e account is registered under a fa%e
female user, uses a fa%e profile picture and identity of a common female. @e will invite the victim
!an online friend! to meet each other.
E"pecting that she will meet a fellow female, the victim becomes less suspicious and agrees to
come- the worst part is that the rapist murdered the victim after raping her to destroy any evidence
of his crime.
To anticipate this, it is important to understand the characters of your online friends. In addition, to
prevent such crime, we should always be cautious and wisely use social networ% that has been our
todays lifestyle.
Tips on Avoiding 4eing a 1ictim of Cyber Crime
*idespreading cyber crime and fraud should encourage us to be wise and cautious while engaging
an online interaction. There are some good tips on how to avoid being a victim of cyber crime as
follow0
1. 4e careful in filling out details of identity on your personal account information.
;ou may fill out detailed information on your personal account, including your address, occupation,
school, telephone number, e!mail address and family data. This will help people to contact you.
@owever, youd better e"clude sensitive information such as your address and telephone
number, as they will open a chance for malicious person to stal% on you. *hen someone needs to
contact you, as% him to drop a message in your social media inbo" or through e!mail.
3. 2ptimi(e the Information 'etting feature
'et your account to share personal information only with friends you really %now. 'ocial networ%
sites will generally provide an option for you to decide who will be able to have a full view over
your personal account.
5. Approve only request from friends you really %now
)ever easily approve every friend request #ust to have more friends. >ather some information
related to the person who requests to connect to you by visiting his?her personal account on the
social networ% site. In addition, finding out if there are some mutual friends between you and him,
will help you to consider approving the request or declining it.
6. <anage your personal account wisely
Even if you are the owner of your personal account and have full authority to ma%e use of it, youd
better be wise in posting status updates and commentaries as well as when uploading your photos,
so that you will be able to avoid drawing attention from those whose intention is bad. At the end of
the day, your personal account represents a portion of your personality.
7. 4e highly alert when you are invited to meet someone
It is recommended not to accept any invitation to meet someone whom you %now #ust recently. A
long list of rape was reportedly starts on social media, committed by a new social media friend
through an invitation to meet each other. 'hould you insist on accepting the invitation, choose a
rather crowded place and have some friends to accompany you.