“With great power comes great responsibility” - Uncle Ben to Peter Parker, Spiderman

There is no doubt that the Internet revolution has given users great power.  Anyone with basic Internet knowledge can already create their own content, be it a blog, a website, or a profile on a social networking site.  Along with user-generated content, site viewers can also contribute their own input to these sites via comments and guestbook content.  This merry mix of content from site owners and visitors open up a flood of sometimes controversial content.  Throw in the “freedom of expression” mantra, and you’ve got a tricky environment.

Just like any other environment, the Internet also entails some code of ethics.  It may be an unwritten code, but it exists nevertheless.  It is not the kind of etiquette that’s cast in stone, but it would be really great if it’s observed.  In a perfect world of responsible “netizenship”, there would be no spam, no cyberstalkers, no malicious emails, no hacked accounts.  Just plainly nothing malicious, annoying and inconvenient at all.  And all sites created by users will always be of great quality.

The most common problem - aside from viruses, phshing and trojans - is spam.  From spam emails to spam comments, it is has become like an annoying pothole while navigating the Web.  The annoyance of its presence and its possible danger are very discouraging to both site owners and visitors.  The quality of a site dramatically goes down once it is infested by spam.  Worse than spam are malicious comments like hate messages and sexual or any other form of harassment.  Imagine how you would feel if you spent a lot of time and effort in creating a beautiful and interesting site, only to be invaded by irresponsible site visitors leaving spam or other irrelevant  and malicious comments.

It would be very difficult, nearly impossible to police the Internet.  There would always be the issue of censorship and freedom of expression, but just like everything, there are boundaries no matter how vague and inconstant.  There is still a limit to how much people put out on the Net.  The safe rule of thumb is respect and common decency, especially in the prevalence of social networking and blogging.

The main thing to remember when it comes to Net etiquette is that freedom of expression is always coupled with responsibility.  There is a fine and very tricky line between freedom of expression and disrespect or maliciousness.  Self-regulation is the key.

Site owners have the responsibility to publish sites that do not offend the general public.  Sites with sensitive content must have appropriate warning.  Site owners should also avoid being instigators of malicious content themselves.  Some flame wars originate from irresponsible content in the first place, to which readers only react.

Site visitors also share in the responsibility of a friendly or, at the very least, tolerable Internet environment.  Irrelevant and disrespectful comments must be avoided at all times.  Just put yourselves in the shoes of the site owner.  Would you also want to receive such comments on your own site?  It’s really simple - just don’t do to other sites what you don’t want to be done to your own site.

Some basic ethics to remember:

• Don’t put up or write anything that offends races, sexes, religions and cultures.
• Avoid starting or participating in “flame wars”, especially in the forums.
• Treat people as you would face-to-face.  The anonymity of the Internet is no excuse for inappropriate language and behavior.
• It would be really nice to post relevant, useful content.  Avoid posting just for the sake of having content.  The Internet revolution headlines freedom of expression, so go ahead, express yourself!  Properly, that is.
• Respect, above everything else.

Net etiquette is sometimes a very touchy subject, but it has to be dealt with.  Just as we take care of our physical environment, we should also be mindful of the virtual one.  There is no harm in being ethical and there is a lot to be gained.