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News archive 2.8 million Web-phobes get their Day It might not be as well documented as arachnophobia, nor the subject of gruesome horror movies, but millions of Brits are gripped by web fear, and it's holding them back in their everyday lives. New research from UK online centres has found 2.8 million people are actually afraid of using the internet. Whether it's fear of pressing the wrong button or getting lost on the wrong sites, fear of viruses and hackers or just fear of the unknown, 1 in 20 people are genuine web-phobes. The new survey, conducted in August, found that a further 1 in 10 people lack confidence in using the internet. Overall, that means more than 9 million people are too scared or too nervous to be taking advantage of the information, opportunities and benefits the web can provide. The good news from the survey is that three quarters of the internet-wary wanted to learn more about it, and they're the people being targeted by a new Get online day campaign.
Get online day is a partnership campaign from UK online centres, Campaign for Learning, Intel and PC World. Taking place on Friday 12 October, Get online day is part of Family Learning Week, and aims to get families of all shapes and sizes into a participating UK online centre and onto the web for a taster of how it might help out in everyday family life. Helen Milner is Managing Director of UK online centres. She said: "There seems to be a general assumption that everybody is already online. Every day cyber-news seems to hit the headlines, and everywhere you look there's a www-dot option. But the truth is there are a significant number of people missing out on the digital revolution. Our research shows a staggering 40% of people haven't been online in the last three months or more. 1 in 12 households don't have access to a computer, a mobile phone or an internet connection. "There is a real cost to not being online, for individuals and families, for government and for industry. People who aren't online can't helping their children with homework research on the internet, they aren't renewing their tax disc online, emailing friends and family, comparing prices or looking up information at the click of a mouse, and they're still queuing up to check their bank balance or get their shopping in. Being online really can save people time, hassle and money, and it can even be fun in the process. "For government there is an obvious value in promoting IT skills and supporting people to use cheaper, online channels to access public services and transact with the state. For industry, having such a significant proportion of the population excluded from technology is a risk to future development in terms of both communication and consumption. Digital inclusion is a cross-sector issue, and Get online day a cross-sector response. By working together, we hope we can motivate and inspire the fearful, nervous and even the disinterested to give computers and the internet a go." Get online day events are planned at UK online centres across England throughout Family Learning Week, 6 - 14 September. Families taking part will face the Family Web Challenge, and dabble in a spot of internet shopping, homework help and family health research. Those completing the online challenge will be in-line for various prizes. With support from celebrity mum Debra Stephenson, it's hoped thousands of web-phobes will face their fears. Helen adds: "Get online day aims to tackle the digital divide via the generation gap. Instead of dividing the generations, we want IT to bring them together. If you're a web-phobe, or you know someone who is, this is the day to get going online!" Ends For further information please contact Abi Stevens on 0778 666 0689 or email
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