What is Internet?

Internet can be defined as the worldwide network where machines like computers,
servers, and smart devices are connected together for communication and data
exchange purposes. In the layman's terminology, the Internet is the network of
networks interconnecting computing devices located throughout the world. These
networks use some communication protocols to link the network devices with each
other.

Internet Architecture
To understand the working of the Internet, it is important to understand the
underlying concepts and the infrastructure of the Internet. The two major concepts
that run the Internet are (a) the IP address and (b) the TCP/IP protocol suite.

Internet Address
Every computer that is connected to the Internet must have a unique address. This
address is called the IP address. IP stands for the Internet Protocol. We can define
the "Protocol" as a set of rules. Therefore, the Internet Protocol can be defined as
the set of internet rules associated with the Internet communication. The IP
address can be thought of a destinations address. For instance, when we need to
post a letter, we need the recipient's address. The letter also contains the sender's
information. This sender and receiver information on the envelope not only makes
sure the delivery of the letter to the correct recipient, but it also informs the
recipient about the sender address. IP address plays a similar role in the Internet
communication.

There are two types of IP addresses namely (a) Private IP address and (b) Public
IP address. The private IP address is an arbitrary IP address assigned by the user.
There are three blocks of IP addresses that are dedicated for private use and they
are 10.x.x.x (Class A), 172.16.x.x - 172.31.x.x (16 Class B) and 192.168.x.x (256
Class C). For instance, if we open the command prompt and type
the ipconfig command, we see an IP address usually ranging between 192.168.1.1
to 192.168.1.254. The private IP addresses are not globally unique as anyone can
use the IP address within their own private network (Intranet). The public IP
address is a globally unique IP address that is assigned by ISPs. The ISP assigns
a public IP address to network device connected to the Internet either dynamically
or statically. The users can check their public IP address through free services
like What Is My IP. The current version of the IPv4 addresses is only 32 bit long.
That means the current IP assigning system can assign IP addresses to only 2 32 (4
billion) computers in the world. To cope with future issues of assigning IP
addresses to more internet users, a new IPv6 address assigning system is already
introduced. The new system can assign IP addresses to 2 128 Internet devices.

TCP/IP Protocol Suite

The TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) suite is a set of
protocols responsible for communication between two networked devices. The
TCP/IP protocol suite ensures that the messages transferred over the internet
reach to the destination IP address. The TCP/IP is a combination of two protocols
(i.e., TCP and IP). The TCP protocol defines the communication channels between
the devices. It converts the communication messages into packets, defines the
correct format of the packets and arranges the packets in the correct order, and
reassembles the packets back into a complete message in the correct format at the
destination. The TCP is also responsible for resending any packets dropped during
the communication process. The IP is responsible for addresses and routing of the
packets to the correct destination. It is important to note that not all
communications use TCP/IP suite. The communications where the handshake and
acknowledgment are not required usually use the other protocols like UDP (User
Datagram Protocol). The example includes the live video streaming on the internet.

Internet Security
The communication over the Internet is not 100% secure and anyone on the
network can eavesdrop your traffic. The computers and network devices are
vulnerable to different type s of cyber threats. The WanaCry ransomware attack
launched in 2017 is a recent example of how the attackers can break into our
computer systems when we are connected to the Internet. However, some simple
precautions can avoid the majority of the Internet attacks. Following are some
basic precautions that should be followed while surfing the internet.

 Keep your Internet connected device software up to date

 Install any patches recommended by the vendors
 Never install software from untrusted suppliers
 Avoid downloading software from the suspicious websites
 Never click on the email links from the unknown and suspicious email
accounts
 Never download the email attachments that you don't trust
 Use antivirus and antispyware to scan your system and applications
 Check your system logs and access permissions of the applications running
on your system
 Always use the licensed version of the software
  Use personal VPN to protect your identity and privacy

Conclusion
The Internet has brought endless benefits to the world. There is hardly anyone who
does not use the Internet. People use the Internet for World-Wide-Web, Email,
Messaging (Chat), Streaming and Gaming to name a few. The Internet is a great
source of information and people use it to research on any topic. The search
engines like Google, Yahoo, and Bing are widely used for gaining valuable
information like world news, financial insights, and weather forecasts. The Internet
is a great source of finding places and tracing locations through Google maps and
Global Positioning System (GPS). Many people use the Internet for learning. There
are many websites that offer free and paid learning environment to the users.
Social sharing is a great way of expressing the views. People use the Internet to
share their thoughts and give inputs on different matters on the social media
through the Internet. The Internet is a source of income for many people. There are
a large number of online businesses that offer work from home opportunity to the
Internet users. Internet banking is one of the largest financial services that people
use on daily basis. Thus, we can conclude the Internet as an integral part of our
life.